Gun owner who confronted group breaking car windows on trial in shooting death of 13-year-old

The fine line between self-defense and criminal offense was the focus of jury selection Tuesday in the trial of a District man accused in the shooting death of 13-year-old Karon Blake.

Prosecutors said Jason Lewis, 42, shot and killed the teen in January 2023 because the boy was with a group of juveniles breaking into cars on the defendant’s block, including his own.

Legal gun owners, such as Mr. Lewis, are not allowed to use deadly force to defend their property under D.C. law.

But Mr. Lewis’ legal team said the defendant was protecting himself after one of the thieves shot at him first — something that wasn’t shared publicly until the defense’s opening statement.

Defense attorneys said a discarded gun holster left behind by the other juvenile accomplices helped prove it was a self-defense shooting outside Mr. Lewis’ home on the 1000 block of Quincy Street Northeast.

It’s a new wrinkle to a case that has long been defined by the slain teen's last words, which were captured by Mr. Lewis’ home surveillance camera.

“‘I’m sorry! I’m sorry! Please don’t, man, please don’t. I’m just a kid,’” exclaimed prosecutor Jeffrey Wojcik to kick off his opening statement.

Prosecutors portrayed Mr. Lewis’ actions as reckless during the short start to the trial, which only lasted about an hour given a lengthy jury selection process.

Mr. Wojcik said the defendant didn’t put on his glasses or check his security cameras when he heard banging out in the streets just before 4 a.m. on Jan. 7, 2023.

Instead, the lead prosecutor said Mr. Lewis leaned out of his front gate, pointed his gun in the direction of the sound and opened fire on the young thieves.

One of the shots hit the rear passenger window of the juveniles’ getaway vehicle, police evidence showed.

That’s when Karon ran, prosecutors acknowledge, in the direction of Mr. Lewis. The 13-year-old was shot twice as he ran toward Mr. Lewis.

“You cannot kill someone simply for breaking into your car,” Mr. Wojcik said.

Metropolitan Police Officer Omarri Jackson, who was the first officer to respond to the scene, testified that no weapons were found on the teen.

He also said Mr. Lewis didn’t share that he had fired on the juveniles before Karon ran toward him.

The officer’s body camera footage showed the defendant giving the teen CPR.