On November 16, 2021, Ali Elbanna was shot and killed during an attempted robbery at a Costco in Dallas while loading his groceries into his car. Four individuals were arrested and charged with capital murder related to the killing along with multiple counts of aggravated robbery for offenses committed earlier the same day. Some of the articles regarding the incident can be found here: NBC DFW, Fox 4, CBS, Dallas Morning News
On Tuesday, April 26, 2022, at 1:00 p.m. at the Henry Wade Juvenile Justice Center (2600 Lone Star Dr., Dallas, TX 75212) the juvenile who pulled the trigger to kill Mr. Elbanna was set to be up for certification as an adult in the 305th Dallas County District Court with Judge Cheryl Lee Shannon as the presiding judge. The Dallas County District Attorney’s prosecution team is requesting the certification.
On Monday, April 25, 2022, the court reset the hearing date, postponing the juvenile certification hearing to a date that is to be determined.
In anticipation of the rescheduling of the certification and in an effort to raise awareness of the importance of the case, the family of Ali Elbanna gathered at the Henry Wade Juvenile Justice Center (2600 Lone Star Dr., Dallas, TX 75212) Tuesday to share messages with community members and others to show support for the family.
It is the hope of the family to raise awareness of the need for justice and specifically to push for the judge to certify the juvenile who shot and killed Ali Elbanna as an adult prior to them standing for trial.
Additional Background Information about the Case:
Two of the three adult defendants in the case who were with the juvenile to commit the murder had their bonds on the capital murder charges reduced by half after requesting the reduction.
The presiding judge who reduced the bonds and will be the presiding judge over all three adult defendants and the juvenile should they be certified as an adult is Judge Lela Lawrence Mays of the 283rd District Court.
One of the three adult defendants had a no-bill by the grand jury for the capital murder charge.
Additional Background Information on Ali Elbanna:
Ali Elbanna, a naturalized American citizen born in Lebanon to Palestinian refugees, was a resident of the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex for more than 30 years. He was married to Stephanie Young Elbanna, a Fort Worth native, for 33 years, and together they had five children. Mr. Elbanna owned and operated a small wholesale business in Arlington, Texas, and was an active member of the local Muslim community. He was 60 years old at the time of his passing.
For additional information about the case or to speak to the family, please call (682) 559-4062 or email mary.elbanna@gmail.com.
