The man convicted of killing three members of a D.C. family and their housekeeper in a case known as the 鈥渕ansion murders鈥� is seeking a new trial, saying the judge in his 2018 trial improperly blocked his lawyers from calling an additional witness that “robbed the defense from presenting a powerful piece of evidence.”
Daron Wint, 40, was convicted of premeditated first-degree murder in the May 2015 killings of Savvas and Amy Savopoulos; their 10-year-old son, Philip; and Veralicia Figueroa. All four were found beaten and stabbed to death inside the family鈥檚 Woodley Park home, which had been set on fire.
The 55-page brief, which lays out the legal basis for Wint鈥檚 appeal, was filed with the D.C. Court of Appeals on Dec. 22, nearly two years after he was sentenced to four consecutive life sentences in the killings. The brief was authored by three attorneys with the D.C. Public Defender Service, which represents Wint.
The additional witness relates to the testimony of one of Wint鈥檚 brothers, who Wint鈥檚 attorneys claimed were the real culprits in the killings.
During his , Wint took the stand in his own defense and claimed his two younger brothers had tricked him into going to the Savopoulos鈥� lavish Northwest D.C. home and leaving his DNA behind, including on a half-eaten pizza crust.
For their part, prosecutors maintained that there was no evidence linking either younger brother to the killings, and that Wint had falsely accused them to evade responsibility for the crime.
Both of Wint鈥檚 brothers ended up testifying during the trial, including Darrell Wint, a half-brother, who took the stand during the prosecution鈥檚 rebuttal phase of the trial 鈥� after the defense had already rested its case.
With Darrell Wint鈥檚 testimony and other evidence, prosecutors sought to provide an alibi for the younger brother during the two days the victims were taken captive, tortured and murdered.
Among the evidence prosecutors showed the jury: the testimony of a friend who told jurors Darrell Wint was at his house in Gaithersburg, Maryland, watching his friend’s original music video that was uploaded to YouTube on the same day the crime unfolded, accompanied by a timestamp from the music-streaming platform for the 鈥淗ater鈥檚 Hate鈥� video.
However, Daron Wint鈥檚 attorneys argued another witness would have 鈥渟trongly cast doubt鈥� on that part of Darrell Wint鈥檚 alibi, because a woman who lived at the house said Darrell Wint usually called or texted before he stopped by, and the phone records show the only calls or text between the two were several days after the killings.
The additional witness and phone records 鈥渨ould have offered a critical refutation of the Gaithersburg alibi the government advanced for Darrell,鈥� Wint鈥檚 lawyers wrote in the brief.
However, D.C. Superior Court Judge Juliet McKenna blocked defense attorneys from calling the witness at the end of the trial, in part, because the defense had already presented its case.
McKenna, who鈥檚 now the presiding judge of the court鈥檚 criminal division, ruled that the woman鈥檚 testimony was equivocal and wouldn鈥檛 have necessarily rebutted Darrell Wint鈥檚 alibi. She also concluded that the specifics of Darrell Wint鈥檚 alibi did not constitute a 鈥渘ew matter鈥� legally speaking, because defense attorneys had raised questions about Darrell Wint鈥檚 whereabouts from the beginning of the trial. Therefore, the defense was not entitled to an additional 鈥渟urrebuttal鈥� phase of the trial, the judge ruled.
鈥淭he trial court was wrong in both respects and this Court should reverse,鈥� the brief stated.
The legal brief is the first movement in nearly two years in a case that captivated and horrified D.C. and garnered international news coverage.
At Daron Wint鈥檚 February 2019 sentencing, Assistant U.S. Attorney Laura Bach called the killings 鈥渂y far one of the most heinous crimes anyone has ever committed鈥� in D.C.
Prosecutors said Daron Wint was motivated by greed. An unemployed welder who previously worked for the Savopoulos company, he held the victims captive for nearly 24 hours and forced Savvas Savopoulos, the CEO of the family-owned American Iron Works, to withdraw $40,000 from the business bank account and have it delivered to the home, according to prosecutors.
Federal prosecutors have until Feb. 23 to file their brief in reply, but that deadline is likely to be extended.
Daron Wint鈥檚 murder trial was the subject of the 91欧美激情 original podcast, 鈥�22 Hours: An American Nightmare,鈥� released in 2019.
