Dominique Bassil | Homicide Watch DC

Dominique Bassil Sentenced to 17 Years in Stabbing Death of Boyfriend

Sam Pearson — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 19:12:54 -0500

Dominique Bassil was sentenced to 17 years in prison Friday for the stabbing death of her boyfriend, Vance Harris II following a wedding in August 2011.

Bassil was found guilty of second-degree murder in Harris' death in November.

In a sentencing memorandum, Assistant U.S. Attorney Michelle Jackson told the court that Harris' death was a case of domestic violence and that the case "highlights that men are victims of domestic violence just like women."

At trial, Bassil's attorney, Madeline Harvey, argued that Bassil stabbed Harris in self-defense. She asked the jury to believe what Bassil told them when she testified at trial: that Harris was drunk and agitated after a wedding reception where the two apparently argued and that Bassil had reason to be scared of him.

“He was a manly type of man, not some kind of softy,” Harvey said of Harris in her closing arguments. “Just because his friends say he didn’t get angry at the wedding, does not mean that he did not go home and beat his woman, which is exactly what happened.”

Judge Robert Morin said he wasn't convinced by the defense's arguments and found some of Bassil's actions after her arrest, including that she tried to use Harris' Social Security number for unemployment benefits and tried to pay a bill with one of his checking accounts, troubling.

He acknowledged, though, that Bassil had no prior criminal record before her murder conviction.

"The reality is, there are only two people that know what happened," Morin said, "and one of them is unable to tell his side of the story."

Several of Harris' family members described him as a gentle, supportive man who worked several jobs to provide for his family. His mother told the court that Harris had reached the rank of Eagle Scout within the Boy Scouts.

Before sentencing On Friday, Harvey asked sentencing judge Robert Morin to overturn the jury's verdict, arguing that the jury didn't follow proper case law when it decided that Bassil didn't act in self-defense.

Morin denied the motion.

Sentencing documents are below.

Dominique Bassil Memorandum in Aid of Sentencing (PDF)Dominique Bassil Memorandum in Aid of Sentencing (Text)

Dominique Bassil Motion Post-Verdict Judgment of Aquittal (PDF)Dominique Bassil Motion Post-Verdict Judgment of Aquittal (Text)

Government's Opposition to Defense Motion for Post-Verdict Judgment of Acquittal (PDF)Government's Opposition to Defense Motion for Post-Verdict Judgment of Acquittal (Text)

A press release from the U.S. Attorney's Office is below:

WASHINGTON– Dominique Bassil, 26, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to 17 years of incarceration on a charge of second-degree murder while armed in the stabbing and killing of her boyfriend, U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. announced.

Bassil was found guilty of the charge in November 2012 by a jury in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. She was sentenced by the Honorable Robert E. Morin. Upon completion of her prison term, Bassil will be placed on five years of supervised release.

According to evidence at trial, on Aug. 12, 2011, Bassil and her boyfriend, Vance Harris II, 28, attended an evening wedding and reception in Mitchellville, Md. During the evening, Bassil complained that Mr. Harris, a member of the wedding party, was not spending enough time with her. At the end of the reception, a witness observed Bassil berate Mr. Harris and push him in his face as he talked to others. Another witness observed Bassil strike Mr. Harris as the witness suggested to him that he get a hotel room instead of going home with the defendant.

After Bassil and Mr. Harris left the reception, police officers in Capitol Heights, Md. encountered them on the side of a road. Bassil complained that she was tired of arguing, fussing, and fighting with Mr. Harris. Police observed that Mr. Harris’s tuxedo had been torn. Bassil, however, had no injuries and her clothes were intact. Police permitted the two to travel home after neither complained of an assault.

On Aug. 13, 2011, just before 2:30 a.m., Bassil and Mr. Harris returned to Bassil’s apartment in the 3900 block of 13th Street SE. About 20 minutes later, surveillance footage depicted Bassil exiting her building wearing only a pink night cap and panties while armed with a knife. The footage also captured her disposing of the knife in a trash can before going to the security guard booth to report that she stabbed her boyfriend because he was beating her.

Seconds after Bassil had exited the building, surveillance footage captured Mr. Harris briefly exiting the front door of the building holding a stab wound to his arm that was dripping blood. Mr. Harris returned to the apartment on the third floor of the building, only to discover that he was locked out. After knocking on a neighbor’s door for help, Mr. Harris fell unconscious in the hallway, where he eventually died from his injuries. A medical examiner found that Mr. Harris had a stab wound to the abdomen that penetrated the liver and two stab wounds to the right arm that partially severed an artery.

Upon the defendant’s arrest, in a statement to police, she alleged that Mr. Harris had pulled her hair, pushed her to the ground, and dragged her. The police investigation revealed that Bassil had no visible injuries, although she complained of back pain. According to medical personnel, no tenderness was found in the area where she complained of pain.

In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Machen praised the work of the detectives, officers and others who investigated the case for the Metropolitan Police Department. He also commended the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Investigator Nelson Rhone, Jr.; Litigation Technology Specialists Anisha Bhatia, Joshua Ellen, William Henderson, Paul Howell, and Kimberly Smith; Victim Witness Advocate Marcia Rinker, Victim Witness Specialist David Foster, Paralegal Specialists Kelly Blakeney and Kwasi Fields; Intern Jason Amirhadji, and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Charles Cobb, who investigated the case, and Michelle D. Jackson, who prosecuted the case.

"Guilty" Verdict in Dominique Bassil Murder Case

Penny Ray — Fri, 09 Nov 2012 12:16:55 -0500

Jurors today found Dominique Bassil guilty of second-degree murder while armed in connection with the stabbing death of her boyfriend, Vance Harris III.

Jurors deliberated for three full days before announcing their verdict at about 11 a.m. Friday.

The announcement was delivered to a courtroom silent but for Bassil's tears.

“What about my baby?” Bassil cried, as her defense attorney, Madalyn Harvey, consoled her with her left arm around Bassil's shoulders.

At trial Harvey had argued that Bassil stabbed Harris in self-defense. She asked the jury to believe what Bassil told them when she testified at trial: that Harris was drunk and agitated after a wedding reception where the two apparently argued and that Bassil had reason to be scared of him.

“He was a manly type of man, not some kind of softy,” Harvey said. “Just because his friends say he didn’t get angry at the wedding, does not mean that he did not go home and beat his woman, which is exactly what happened.”

Prosecutors had argued that the stabbing was not in self defense. In closing arguments Monday, Assistant U.S. Attorney Michelle Jackson urged jurors to conclude that Harris posed no threat to Bassil.

“He didn’t threaten her. All the evidence has shown that he didn’t lay a finger on her,” Jackson said.

“I wish she wasn't guilty for sure,” said Bassil's mother, Peeair Bassil. “She didn't mean to kill him. If she did, she wouldn't have called me that night. I just hope when they sentence her they don't hit her too hard.”

Bassil's aunt, Tabitha Howard, said the family would now have to explain the verdict to Bassil's eight-year-old daughter

“Her daughter doesn't know anything about this,” she said. “She's not going to understand why her mother's not coming back.”

Members of Harris' family who had attended the trial were not visible in the courtroom for the verdict Friday morning.

Judge Morin ordered Bassil be held until sentencing which is scheduled for January 18, 2013.

Jury Still Out In Dominique Bassil Case

Penny Ray — Thu, 08 Nov 2012 17:09:29 -0500

After a third full day of deliberations, the jury is still out in the case of Dominique Bassil, who is on trial for the Aug. 2011 stabbing death of her boyfriend, Vance Harris III.

Yesterday, the jury asked Judge Robert Morin if they could consider "question number two" if they could not come to an agreement on question one.

They were instructed to continue deliberating on the first question related to the charge of second-degree murder.

The jury is expected to return at 9:30 a.m. Friday to continue deliberations.

Jury Begins Deliberations in Dominique Bassil Murder Trial

Jonah Newman — Mon, 05 Nov 2012 16:38:22 -0500

Dominique Bassil's fate is now in the hands of the five men and seven women who must decide whether she was acting in self-defense when she stabbed and killed her boyfriend, Vance Harris II, on Aug. 13, 2011.

Jurors were sent to deliberations Monday afternoon after hearing closing arguments in the case. The trial began Oct. 23.

Bassil is charged with second-degree murder.

Prosecutors have argued that the stabbing was not in self defense. In closing arguments Monday, Assistant U.S. Attorney Michelle Jackson urged jurors to conclude that Harris posed no threat to Bassil.

"He didn't threaten her. All the evidence has shown that he didn't lay a finger on her," Jackson said.

But Bassil's defense attorney, Madalyn Harvey, asked the jury to believe what Bassil told them when she testified last week: that Harris was drunk and agitated after a wedding reception where the two apparently argued and that Bassil had reason to be scared of him.

"He was a manly type of man, not some kind of softy," Harvey said. "Just because his friends say he didn't get angry at the wedding, does not mean that he did not go home and beat his woman, which is exactly what happened."

Attorneys on both sides have tried to use Harris' size--he was six feet eight inches tall and at least 250 pounds--to support their point. Jackson called him a "teddy bear" and a "gentle giant."

"That's the great thing about his height and weight. If he lays a finger on you, you're going to know it," Jackson said. "[Bassil] didn't even have a hangnail."

But Harvey argued that Harris was so big that he didn't need a weapon to hurt Bassil. Bassil told investigators that Harris slapped her on her face and dragged her off their bed the night she stabbed him.

"She's telling the truth, that she stabbed an unarmed man," Harvey said of Bassil. "She was scared and she wanted him to get away."

Jackson continued to portray Bassil as a jealous girlfriend who acted irrationally when she didn't get what she wanted and an unreliable source who changed her story repeatedly.

Jurors began deliberating at about 3:30 Monday afternoon. If a verdict is not reached Monday, deliberations will pick up again at 9:30 a.m. Tuesday.

In Trial, Tearful Bassil Says She Didn't Mean to Stab Harris

Penny Ray — Thu, 01 Nov 2012 22:18:18 -0400

A tearful Dominique Bassil took the stand in her own defense today, as both the prosecution and defense concluded their cases in the death of Bassil's boyfriend, Vance Harris II.

"Did you love Vance?" defense attorney Madalyn Harvey asked Bassil.

"Yes," Bassil replied.

"Did you want to stab him?"

"No. I was scared."

Bassil wiped the tears from her eyes as Harvey concluded her questioning.

Bassil insists she stabbed Harris in self-defense. At trial, Harvey described Harris as having violent tendencies.

Bassil testified that she initially told investigators that prior to the stabbing Harris had never been physically abusive towards her.

When asked by the defense if she would like to change that statement, Bassil said that Harris once hit her in the arm for changing the radio in his car. She said that the punch left a bruise which Bassil's sister later noticed. She never told investigators about the incident, Bassil said, because she didn't consider it to be abuse.

Bassil said the punch was the only incident of physical abuse by Harris that she could recall.

Another woman told the court she'd encountered Harris while he was working as a security guard at a Maryland department store. She testified that in July 2011 Harris grabbed her arm and refused to let her leave the property because she refused to show a receipt for her purchases.

The witness said that Harris left a bruise on her arm which hurt for the rest of the day. The woman reported Harris to police after the incident, but Harris was never arrested.

Prosecutors have argued that Bassil killed Harris when her frustration with Harris's interaction with other women had reached a tipping point. In trial, phone records showed that Bassil had called at least two of Harris's previous girlfriends, including calls to one's work and cell phone.

At trial, prosecutors described Bassil's and Harris' relationship as "on-again, off-again." A friend who introduced the couple testified that though the relationship began as strictly sexual, it soon turned into a committed relationship. Bassil and Harris lived together in 2008 in Bassil's Southeast DC apartment.

Harris, though, married another woman in 2009, the friend testified.

When Bassil learned that Harris was married she told a mutual friend that she and Harris “were still gonna be together” because he was “her man,” according to testimony. In 2010 Bassil got a tattoo of Harris's initials, and despite the marriage, Harris and Bassil remained romantically involved with one another. Harris later moved back with Bassil after separating from his wife, the friend who introduced them testified.

That friend said that in the months before Harris' murder, Bassil was frustrated with Harris because Harris would not answer his cell phone while away. He testified that Bassil "didn't understand why [Harris] got off [work] at eleven at night but didn't get home until four or five in the morning."

The night Harris died, he and Bassil attended a wedding together. According to the bride and groom, Harris, as part of the wedding party, sat at a different table than Bassil during the reception. Wedding attendees described Harris as free spirited, dancing with every man and woman at the wedding. The groom overheard Bassil tell Harris that she "wanted attention."

In the prosecutor's cross examination of the defendant, Bassil testified that Harris never hit nor threatened her at the wedding or reception.

A Prince George's County police office testified that he had questioned Bassil hours before the stabbing occurred, after seeing Bassil sitting on a curb in Capitol Heights, Maryland. According to his testimony, Bassil told the officer that she and Harris had been arguing during their drive home from a wedding. The officer said Bassil seemed calm when he first began questioning her, but she soon began to cry. The officer observed no cuts, bruises, lacerations or bleeding; and Bassil made no mention of being fearful of going home with Harris. No arrests were made, and Bassil and Harris left together.

Prosecutors believe that the couple argued in Bassil's apartment after the wedding. They said Bassil hit Harris in the head with a leather boot, then used a kitchen knife to stab him.

Bassil testified at trial that Harris didn't hit nor swing at her after she stabbed him the first time. She said that after she stabbed him a second time Harris reached for a knife of his own. She then ran out of the apartment.

Neighbors told the court that early in the morning of Aug. 13, they heard Bassil's door slam shut and what sounded like footsteps running down the stairs. Minutes later they heard someone run back up the stairs and bang on Bassil’s apartment door.

"Oh, you gonna lock me out," a neighbor said Harris yelled.

A few minutes later Harris knocked on the neighbor’s door seeking assistance.

The neighbor opened the door, saw that Harris was bleeding, then closed the door fearing that someone was chasing Harris. Harris put his back against the neighbor’s door and slid to the floor; he died while waiting for an ambulance.

A medical examiner testified that Harris had defensive wounds to his left hand, and that the fatal wound—which damaged a major artery in Harris's right arm—may have been a defensive wound as well.

Closing arguments are expected Monday.

In Trial, Prosecutors Describe Vance Harris's Last Moments Alive

Penny Ray — Wed, 24 Oct 2012 21:31:30 -0400

In the first full day of testimony in the murder case against Dominique Bassil, prosecutors focused on Vance Harris's last moments alive.

Harris, 28, was fatally stabbed in Southeast D.C. on Aug. 13, 2011. Bassil, Harris's girlfriend, has pleaded innocent by reason of self-defense to the second-degree murder charge against her.

In testimony Wednesday, witnesses described hearing a door slam shut, before hearing footsteps run down the stairs of Bassil's apartment building on the morning of Aug. 13. Minutes later witnesses heard someone run back up the stairs and bang on Bassil's apartment door.

"Oh, you gonna lock me out," a witness said Harris yelled.

A few minutes later Harris knocked on a neighbor's door seeking assistance.

The neighbor opened the door, saw that Harris was bleeding, then closed the door fearing that someone was chasing Harris. Harris put his back against the neighbor's door and slid to the floor; the neighbor yelled to his girlfriend to call 911.

Jurors heard that 911 call, and a second one made by the same neighbor, Wednesday.

In the first call, a neighbor told the dispatcher that "blood is coming through my door." The dispatcher asked who the victim was, and the neighbor said, "I don't even know him. Oh God, he's bleeding real bad."

The neighbor later made a second call to 911, asking, "Where is the ambulance for this man?" The dispatcher replied: "The call just came in four minutes ago."

The ambulance had trouble getting in the gate to the apartment complex, another witness testified, and by the time paramedics arrived, Harris was dead.

The neighbor who called 911 testified that Bassil never opened the door to her apartment during the time that Harris was lying in the hallway, despite several knocks at her door. That witness also testified that they heard no yells, screams, or cries for help prior to the door slamming.

According to charging documents in the case, at the time of her arrest Bassil agreed to be interviewed on tape by homicide detectives. According to the charging documents, in the interview she

stated that the victim, Harris, was verbally abusive and began to slap her when she picked up a shoe and began striking the defendant. [Bassil] could have walked out of the apartment and called for help. Instead, [Bassil] stated that she ran out of the bedroom into the kitchen and picked up a twelve inch stainless steel knife off of the kitchen counter and began stabbing the victim, Harris. [Bassil] then ran out the apartment where she was caught on video throwing the knife in the trash can before going to the apartment security booth. [Bassil] said that she dropped the knife as she was running from the apartment. A bloody knife was recovered on the floor next to the victim, Harris, and another bloody knife was recovered in the trash can by the security booth where the defendant was observed throwing it away.

A medical examiner testified that Harris suffered three stab wounds: one to his right abdomen, one that entered the back of his right forearm then exited the front, and one to the front of his upper-right arm. The wound that entered his forearm and exited the front damaged a major artery and caused Harris rapid blood loss. The examiner also testified that Harris had defensive injuries on his left hand.

While the examiner described the wounds, using photos to show entry and exit points, Bassil sat with her left hand over her forehead. Her eyes turned down, and Bassil never once looked at the photographs.

A crime scene investigator who processed Bassil after she was picked up by police on the day of the stabbing testified that Bassil had no visible injuries or bruises anywhere on her body.

The trial is set to resume Thursday at 10 a.m. in courtroom 318.

Murder Trial Begins Against Dominique Bassil in Death of Vance Harris

Jonah Newman — Tue, 23 Oct 2012 22:33:14 -0400

The trial began Tuesday in the case against Dominique Bassil, who has been charged with second-degree murder in the stabbing death of her boyfriend, Vance Harris II.

In opening arguments, both sides made clear that the case will revolve around the question of whether or not Bassil was acting in self-defense when she stabbed Harris in their Southeast D.C. apartment in the early morning of Aug. 13, 2011.

"This case is not a whodunnit," Assistant U.S. Attorney Michele Jackson said during her opening statement. "It's not a James Patterson novel. This case is about self-defense. Was the defendant acting out of self-defense? And the answer is: No."

Bassil wiped tears from her eyes as Jackson read a series of text messages Bassil sent to Harris in the month leading up to his murder. Jackson used the messages to paint a picture of a tumultuous relationship and to depict Bassil as a jealous girlfriend.

"This case is about mounting, escalating, growing anger and frustration with her cheating, disrespecting boyfriend," Jackson said of Bassil.

Bassil's defense attorney, Madalyn Harvey, spoke for less than half as long as Jackson, but her message was also clear.

"[Bassil's] actions were acts of self defense and they were legally justified," Harvey told jurors.

She pointed out that the pair had returned from a wedding earlier that night and that Harris was "extremely intoxicated. He was aggressive and abusive."

She added that Harris was 6-feet, 9-inches tall and "almost 300 pounds."

The trial will resume tomorrow at 10:00 a.m. in courtroom 318.

Dominique Bassil Indicted on Murder 2 in Stabbing Death of Boyfriend, Vance Harris

Laura Amico — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 11:26:08 -0500

Dominique Bassil was indicted today on one count of second-degree murder while armed in the stabbing death of Vance Harris on Aug. 13.

Bassil is suspected of killing Harris, her boyfriend, in their Southeast D.C. apartment. Her attorney, Elizabeth Mullins, argued at a preliminary hearing that the fatal stabbing could have been in self-defense. Bassil told police that that night in their apartment Harris attacked her, slapping her until she ran into the kitchen and grabbed a knife.

“The only reason I got away is because I stabbed him,” Mullins read at a preliminary hearing from a transcript of Bassil's interview with police.

The indictment on second-degree murder while armed is the second time charges have been increased or reduced in the case. Bassil was arrested on suspicion of second-degree murder, but at the preliminary hearing Judge Gerald Fisher said he could only find evidence to support a charge of involuntary manslaughter.

Bassil was scheduled to be arraigned on the charge Thursday morning; court records have not yet been updated with her plea.

She is expected back in court on Jan. 26 and remains released from custody.

Judge Finds Involuntary Manslaughter, not Murder 2, in Vance Harris Death at Preliminary Hearing

Laura Amico — Thu, 18 Aug 2011 11:54:05 -0400

Judge Gerald Fisher ordered the release of 25-year-old Dominique Bassil from custody today, saying that if the court's high intensity supervision and mental health experts agreed, Bassil could live with her mother while awaiting trial.

Bassil is suspected of killing her boyfriend, Vance Harris, last weekend in their Southeast D.C. apartment. Prosecutors had sought a charge of second-degree murder in the case, but Fisher declined to find probable cause for the charge, saying that enough evidence that Bassil had acted in self-defense had been raised. Fisher instead found probable cause for the lesser charge of involuntary manslaughter.

Charging documents in the case allege that Bassil stabbed Harris during an argument. He died that same day after bleeding out of a wound to a major artery in his leg.

Bassil has told authorities that she stabbed Harris. In a videotaped interview with police, she said that during a physical argument the night of Aug. 12 and early in the morning of Aug. 13,

she ran out of the bedroom into the kitchen and picked up a twelve inch stainless steel knife off of the kitchen counter and began stabbing the victim, Harris. [Bassil] then ran out the apartment where she was caught on video throwing the knife in the trash can before going to the apartment security booth.

In court Thursday, Detective Dwayne Partman testified that, according to witnesses, the argument began earlier in the evening at Harris' brother's wedding. Bassil, who had not been invited, showed up at the reception wearing a white gown. Partman said Bassil was described as "stalking" Harris that night and that she was upset when she saw Harris drunk and "mingling" with other women.

Still, the two drove home together, Partman said.

Bassil told police that that night in their apartment Harris attacked her, slapping her until she ran into the kitchen and grabbed a knife. She stabbed him when "he came towards me and looked like he was going to hit me again," Bassil's attorney, Elizabeth Mullins read from Bassil's interview with police.

"The only reason I got away is because I stabbed him," Mullins read from the transcript.

Alone in a police department interview room that night, Mullins said, Bassil wailed, repeating again and again, "I was just trying to get him to stop beating me."

There is no record of any domestic violence between the two, Partman said, adding that Harris' previous girlfriends have not reported any domestic violence, either.

Absent that history, and because Harris was not armed and Bassil was not injured in the altercation, AUSA Charles Cobb said that the government rejects the theory that Bassil acted in self-defense. Cobb also said that given Harris' large size that if he had been attempting to injure Bassil there would be evidence of that.

Said Cobb,

A six-eight, two hudred and forty five pound man could do a lot more damage than he did. There was not even a nick. Nothing that shows she was in fear for her life... Even if you go back and say, 'well, there was a scuffle,' that doesn't allow you to use deadly force. She never said she was in fear for her life.

Fisher, though, disagreed with the government's interpretation.

"This is an odd case," Fisher said. "I don't think I can conclude at this point that there is probable cause because I can't find intent to kill."

In Video-Taped Statement Dominique Bassil told Authorities she Fatally Stabbed Boyfriend in a Domestic Fight

Laura Amico — Mon, 15 Aug 2011 16:54:15 -0400

Dominique Bassil was ordered held today after Judge Karen Howze found probable cause to believe that Bassil killed her boyfriend, Vance Harris, early Saturday by stabbing him.

The decision to hold the 25-year-old woman was met with anger and disbelief by more than a dozen family members who attended the hearing hoping for her release.

"Hang in there Dominique!" one woman shouted as the group ran screaming and sobbing from the courtroom following Howze's finding.

Charging documents in the case allege that Bassil, suspected of second-degree murder, stabbed Harris during an argument. Neither Bassil nor Vance appear to have a record of domestic violence in D.C.

According to charging documents, Bassil agreed to be interviewed on tape by homicide detectives. In the interview she

stated that the victim, Harris, was verbally abusive and began to slap her when she picked up a shoe and began striking the defendant. [Bassil] could have walked out of the apartment and called for help. Instead, [Bassil] stated that she ran out of the bedroom into the kitchen and picked up a twelve inch stainless steel knife off of the kitchen counter and began stabbing the victim, Harris. [Bassil] then ran out the apartment where she was caught on video throwing the knife in the trash can before going to the apartment security booth. [Bassil] said that she dropped the knife as she was running from the apartment. A bloody knife was recovered on the floor next to the victim, Harris, and another bloody knife was recovered in the trash can by the security booth where the defendant was observed throwing it away.

The documents are not clear about who was being struck with a shoe during the argument.

Defense attorney Elizabeth Mullins had asked that the court not find probable cause in the case. She argued that even within the brevity of the charging documents there was evidence that Bassil could have been acting in self defense.

When prosecutor Charles Cobb countered that detectives, as relayed in the charging documents, had found that Bassil had had an opportunity to flee the argument but instead chose to stab Harris, Mullins argued that that may not have been the case.

"That's the detectives interpretation," she said.

A preliminary hearing is scheduled to be held in the case this Thursday. Judge Gerald Fisher is expected to hear the case sometime after 9:30 a.m.

Charging documents are below.

Vance Darnell Harris II Killed in Saturday Morning Stabbing; Dominique Bassil Arrested

Laura Amico — Sun, 14 Aug 2011 18:47:56 -0400

An early morning stabbing in Southeast D.C. Saturday killed 28-year-old Vance Darnell Harris II.

Twenty-five-year-old Dominique Bassil was arrested on suspicion of second-degree murder in connection with the case.

MPD's press release is after the jump.

August 14, 2011

Homicide: 3900 Block of 13th Street, SE

(Washington, DC)-Detectives from the Metropolitan Police Department’s Homicide Branch are investigating the fatal stabbing which occurred in the 3900 block of 13th Street, SE.

On Saturday, August 13, 2011, at approximately 3:00 am, units from the Seventh District responded to the 3900 block of 13th Street, SE to investigate the report of a stabbing. Upon their arrival, they observed a male lying in the hallway of a building, suffering from multiple stab wounds. DC Fire and Emergency Medical Services personnel responded to the scene and determined that the victim had no signs consistent with life.

The decedent has been identified as 28-year-old Vance Darnell Harris II of Southeast, DC

Arrested and charged with Second Degree Murder while Armed was 25-year-old Dominique Bassil of Southeast, DC.