Reginald Jones, D.C. officer charged with murder, gets new lawyer

Reginald Jones, the D.C. police officer charged with participating in the Dec. 1 fatal robbery of a Southeast Washington drug dealer, replaced his court-appointed attorney and hired new representation.

Police charged Jones, a six-year veteran of the police department, with second-degree murder in the shooting death of Arvel S. Alston, 40, during a robbery in the 4200 block of Fourth St. SE.

At a hearing before D.C. Superior Court Judge Michael L. Rankin Thursday, Jones acknowledged that he wanted to hire popular District defense attorney Brian K. McDaniel instead of using Stuart Johnson, the attorney D.C. Superior Court appointed to Jones's case during his initial court appearance.

Jones's father reached out to McDaniel and hired the defense attorney to represent his son.

Before leaving the case, attorney Johnson told Rankin that Jones's time in D.C. jail has been "very hard on him" and that Jones had lost about 30 lbs. while in a confined cell in the jail. Jones has been removed from the prison's general population since being locked up.

Rankin also acknowledged that Jones wrote a letter to him from behind bars and reminded Jones's attorney that all correspondence to the judge from Jones would be copied to both Jones's defense attorney and the prosecutors in his case.

-- Keith L. Alexander