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Suspect In 2011 Hill District Murder In Court

PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- A Pittsburgh man, accused in a two-year-old murder, appeared in court Thursday for a preliminary hearing.

For two years, officials had been looking for 33-year-old Jarrell Liddell. He was wanted for a shooting in the Hill District.

Investigators say a group of people were inside a car on Lombard Street when someone opened fire killing one person and wounding a second.

Police named Liddell as a suspect, but he remained on the run until this past November when he was finally found hiding out in Tucson, Ariz.

Ronald Washington, 23, a father of three small children, was shot and killed.

Washington's mother was overjoyed when Liddell was finally arrested.

"I was just so ecstatic, like I was smiling so happy," Zoe Washington, the victim's mother, said back in November. "I just yelled out, 'Ronnie, he's caught. You can rest in peace now.'"

A woman who was in the car with Washington was shot and wounded. Her mother came to court for Liddell's preliminary hearing.

"For our families, this is a sad state of affairs. My daughter's been through such a traumatic experience. I think it will affect her for the rest of her life," she said. "But sad that everybody has to go through this. We're just hoping we can deal with this as easy as possible."

After the court hearing, Liddell's defense attorney raised questions about the case and the statements of the two witnesses.

"There were a lot of inconsistencies with what she said here in court today and what the other witness who did not appear today said to police," said Kevin Abramovitz, the defense attorney. "There were a lot of inconsistencies, and I think that the Commonwealth doesn't have a particularly strong case here."

RELATED LINKS:
U.S. Marshals Arrest Suspect In 2011 Hill District Murder (11/28/12)
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