A man found dead at 8 a.m. on New Years Eve has been ruled the first homicide victim of 2012, MPD said this afternoon.
The man, 56-year-old Leroy Studevant of Northeast DC, was found dead at about 8 a.m. on Dec. 31, 2011 in the 4200 block of Hunt Place, NE. His cause of death was determined to be “strangulation associated with piercing blunt force trauma,” MPD said.
The case is considered the first homicide of 2012 because the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner did not make any findings on Studevant’s cause of death until Jan. 1, 2012.
MPD’s press release is below.
January 1, 2012
Death Ruled as 2012 Homicide: 4200 block of Hunt Place, NE
( Washington, DC) – Detectives assigned to the Metropolitan Police Department’s Homicide Branch announced today a death in the 4200 block of Hunt Place, NE has been ruled a homicide by the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner.
Shortly after 8 am on Saturday, December 31, 2011, members of the Sixth District responded to a report of an unconscious person in the 4200 block of Hunt Place, NE. Upon arrival on scene, they discovered an unconscious male near a creek under a pathway. Personnel from DC Fire and Emergency Medical Services also responded to the scene and determined the male had no signs of life. He was later pronounced dead by a member of the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner. On Sunday, January 1, 2012, the Office of Chief Medical Examiner ruled the manner of death as homicide. The cause of death was ruled as strangulation associated with piercing blunt force trauma.
The decedent has been identified as 56-year-old Leroy Studevant of Northeast, DC.
** Cause and manner of death in this case was ruled on January 1, 2012 by the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, therefore this death is counted as the first homicide in 2012. The District of Columbia ended the year 2011 with 108 homicides. Please correct any information to the contrary. We regret any miscommunication.**
The Metropolitan Police Department currently offers a reward of up to $25,000 to anyone that provides information which leads to the arrest and conviction of the person or persons wanted for any homicide committed in the District of Columbia.
Anyone with information about this case is asked to call the police at (202) 727-9099 or 1-888-919-CRIME (1-888-919-2746). Additionally, anonymous information may be submitted to the department’s TEXT TIP LINE by text messaging 50411.
