Accused robber resists court-ordered photoshoot

Abdul Howard didn’t make it easy on federal marshals Tuesday to take court-ordered photographs of him wearing a hooded sweatshirt found at the scene of one of a series of 2013 Las Vegas Valley convenience store robberies he’s accused of committing.

That left federal prosecutors with the task of presenting a jury with photos of the multiple felon sticking his tongue out and making faces with the hoodie wrapped around his head.

Chief District Judge Gloria Navarro had ordered marshals to forcibly take the photos after Howard, who is in custody while standing trial, refused to voluntarily be photographed wearing the key evidence in the case.

After seeing the photos before they were presented to the jury, Navarro gave Howard one more chance to cooperate with the marshals and retake the photos, but he declined.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Cristina Silva then presented 10 of the photos to the jury through the testimony of FBI Agent Christopher McPeak, one of the lead investigators in the case. McPeak was on hand when the marshals struggled to put the black and red sweatshirt on the shackled Howard and snap the photos outside the presence of the jury.

Some of the photos were blurry and some showed the hands of marshals on Howard’s head and body. In most of the pictures, Howard tried to distort his face by either sticking his tongue out or puckering his lips.

McPeak explained to the jury that Howard simply “wouldn’t cooperate” with the marshals.

Howard, 48, who has a violent criminal history, looked straight ahead and showed no emotion at the defense table as the photos were displayed in court. His hair is shorter now than at the time of the robberies, and he’s wearing glasses.

The photos were the last evidence Silva and Assistant U.S. Attorney Phillip Smith Jr. presented before resting their case. Defense lawyers Shari Kaufman and Rebecca Levy rested without calling Howard to the witness stand.

Howard, also known as Lesley Long, has been standing trial before Navarro on 27 robbery and firearms charges. He is alleged to have pulled off 14 armed robberies during a crime spree between January and April 2013. A previous trial on the charges ended in a mistrial in October after several days.

Prosecutors made the unusual request for Howard to be photographed in the hoodie as part of an effort to identify him as the man they allege committed the crimes.

They wanted the jury to compare Tuesday’s photos with previously submitted photos taken from surveillance videos of the suspect wearing the hooded sweatshirt cinched around his head.

Prosecutors contended that Howard’s DNA was found on the hoodie, which was worn in a way to conceal facial features.

Defense lawyers objected to showing the pictures to the jury, arguing it would violate Howard’s constitutional rights and deny him a fair trial.

But Navarro sided with prosecutors and allowed the panel to see the photos.

Later, in her closing argument, Silva presented the photos on a big screen for the jury side-by-side with the surveillance photos.

In all, Howard faces 14 felony counts of interference with commerce by robbery, 12 counts of possession of a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence and one count of felon in possession of a firearm. Howard is accused of shooting a store clerk in the head, seriously wounding him, during one of the 14 robberies.

Defense lawyers will make their closing argument today before the case goes to the jury.

Howard also is waiting to be tried on a series of violent crime charges in Clark County District Court stemming from the sexual assault and slaying of a 64-year-old woman and the robbery and sexual assault of a 79-year-old woman.

Because of his lengthy criminal history, Howard will get a mandatory sentence of life in prison if convicted of any of the 27 federal charges. He has felony convictions in Nevada, New York and Florida dating to 1980.

Contact Jeff German at jgerman@reviewjournal.com or 702-380-8135. Find him on Twitter: @JGermanRJ.