Thunderstorms this evening followed by occasional showers overnight. Low 54F. Winds SW at 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 100%..
Thunderstorms this evening followed by occasional showers overnight. Low 54F. Winds SW at 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 100%.
Updated: April 10, 2026 @ 5:17 pm
Jovhon Stewart
Jovhon Alexander Stewart murdered an unarmed man at a Belmont apartment and then tried to dissuade a witness from testifying, a prosecutor told jurors Monday.
Menlo Park resident Stewart, 29, shot Dejohn Jones, 24, at the apartment where Jones’ former girlfriend lived and where Jones had gone to collect a TV and other items, Deputy District Attorney Vishal Jangla said in his opening statement.
“You want trouble? I have a gun,” Stewart said to Jones, jurors were told.
Jones had brought his sister and cousin with him Aug. 5, 2017, when he went to the apartment at 566 Ralston Ave., according to the prosecution.
Stewart, who was in the apartment along with six others, shot Jones in the head after the two men wrestled in the hallway, Jangla said.
While in jail, Stewart called a woman who was a witness to the shooting and told her that where he came from people got whacked for snitching, Jangla recounted.
Stewart warned the woman, “Anybody coming in that courtroom best believe they’re getting whacked too,” Jangla told jurors.
The homicide took place in the one-bedroom apartment between the Belmont Post Office and Classic 101 Burgers and Shakes.
Defense attorney Connie O’Brien said in her opening statement that chaos followed at the apartment when Jones and two family members entered at 5 a.m. in what was akin to a home invasion.
The attorney banged her hand on a courtroom desk to stimulate the more than 20 loud knocks she said woke up people living in the apartment.
Jones announced, “I’m going to spray this place up,” according to one version of what took place, O’Brien said.
Jones had called the day before the fatal shooting to say he was 15 minutes away — and his former girlfriend, after getting angry texts, sat inside the locked apartment holding a metal bat to defend herself, O’Brien told jurors.
Jones, who was angry at his girlfriend was leaving him for a woman, did not show until the next day, the defense attorney said.
O’Brien said her client Stewart made 41 phone calls and only nine brief parts could remotely be said to involve witness persuasion. Stewart spoke in the language of the street, the attorney said. “It’s more like bad TV,” she said.
O’Brien said she agreed with prosecutor Jangla that it’s uncertain what witnesses will testify about in the case.
Jangla told jurors he couldn’t promise what witnesses would say.
“This is not a TV show. This is raw. It’s unpredictable,” the prosecutor said. “But it’s reality. This is real life.”
Please purchase a Premium Subscription to continue reading.
To continue, please log in, or sign up for a new account.
We offer one free story view per month. If you register for an account, you will get two additional story views. After those three total views, we ask that you support us with a subscription.
A subscription to our digital content is so much more than just access to our valuable content. It means you’re helping to support a local community institution that has, from its very start, supported the betterment of our society. Thank you very much!
Only subscribers can view and post comments on articles.
Already a subscriber? Login Here
CoastalBoy said:
Success! An email has been sent to with a link to confirm list signup.
Error! There was an error processing your request.
Sorry, an error occurred.
Already Subscribed!
Cancel anytime
Thank you .
Your account has been registered, and you are now logged in.
Check your email for details.
Submitting this form below will send a message to your email with a link to change your password.
An email message containing instructions on how to reset your password has been sent to the email address listed on your account.
No promotional rates found.
Secure & Encrypted
Thank you.
Your gift purchase was successful! Your purchase was successful, and you are now logged in.
| Rate: | |
| Begins: | |
| Transaction ID: |
A receipt was sent to your email.
(0) comments
Welcome to the discussion.
Log In
Keep the discussion civilized. Absolutely NO personal attacks or insults directed toward writers, nor others who make comments.
Keep it clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
Don't threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Anyone violating these rules will be issued a warning. After the warning, comment privileges can be revoked.