By Laura Amico Briefly, a year in review. Like this one on Homicide Watch D.C.
And if you think that is cool, imagine next year, where with your help each case will have all corresponding documents attached to it.
More to come this week in our year-in-review: Documents for all the dismissed murder cases this year, and a look at a case where one defendant has pleaded guilty and four others are awaiting trial.
Posted by Laura Amico on 12/29/10The nature of what we do sometimes as journalists is that tragedy is good business. This week has been no exception: two teens have been killed in Northwest D.C. One stabbed repeatedly, her body found stuffed in a trash can. One shot in the head on a city street at 4:30 in the afternoon.
In the midst of all this, and because of all this, Homicide Watch D.C. has seen record traffic and users of the site are engaging with it in thoughtful and emotional ways. The past three days have broken every traffic record for the site. To me this means one thing: In about eight weeks we have formed a source for news and information that is welcoming and comforting to the community in the midst of crisis.
We don't know yet what happened to these teens. As much as journalists, friends, and neighbors clamor for answers, an investigation moves at its own pace. Which brings me to my main point and selling argument for this project: covering homicides is not about "if it bleeds it leads." What happened to Ebony Franklin and Prince Okorie matters to me because they walked on the streets that I walk on and shopped in the stores that I shop in. How they are remembered, and that they are remembered means that in the District of Columbia it is not acceptable that these children did not live.
How does that relate to what we are pitching here on Spot.Us? As a journalist and community member I know that in three or four weeks Franklin and Okorie will have mostly been forgotten. HWDC keeps their cases alive and promises answers, like we found this week in Gregory Joyner's death and that of Joseph Alonzo Sharps Jr. when we found charging documents in the cases. These documents have not been published anywhere else. No other news outlet has run these stories. If HWDC does not follow these cases, these men will more than likely be forgotten. And so will Franklin and Okorie.
Posted by Laura Amico on 12/02/10
The Ingmar Guandique/ Chandra Levy case clogged up D.C. Superior Court the past few weeks- bringing super long security lines outside the courthouse and some massive security to get into the courtroom where that case was held, as I found out when one of my recent cases was holding a status conference just before Guandique's scheduled appearance. It also brought out the news trucks and reporters, many of whom sat through the trial day after day then waited patiently in the courthouse these past few days with the jury deliberated.
Despite all that, I was the only reporter at a preliminary hearing for a man accused of killing his 13-year-old daughter. It's a sad case, and certainly a family tragedy. I hope that through reporting on the case, and providing primary source documents, we can help friends and neighbors rattled by the killing to in some way begin to understand what happened on Madison Street. I know that people want to know: the "Angel Morse murder" google search is one of the top five ways readers are making their way to Homicide Watch D.C. Here's the reporting I've done.
There are also several more additions to our library of court documents; on Homicide Watch D.C., find documents in the Angelo Jones murder case and the Jamal Wilson murder case, to name just two of the most recent cases.
Here's my call for technical help, too. You may notice that the site is currently built in WordPress. I'm looking for a good way to organize court documents. If you can suggest a plug-in that you think might work I'd love to try it!
And, of course, consider helping us meet our fundraising goal by making a donation. Your support is so vital and so appreciated.
Posted by Laura Amico on 11/23/10Our intensive fundraising outreach on Spot.Us begins today! Thanks to some great donors (and those awesome surveys they have completed on our behalf!) we've got a head start of almost $400! I'm so glad the Spot.Us community is seeing this as a valuable contribution to the journalism world!
It's looking like a busy week ahead- I'll be in court three days this week following cases. Be sure to check Homicide Watch for the updates.
I'll take this opportunity also to ask for your input. Where do you think Homicide Watch D.C. could go?
Posted by Laura Amico on 11/16/10
