Defendant Fired Seven Shots at Victim
WASHINGTON - Jason Edwards, 32, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to 15 years in prison on charges stemming from an incident last Halloween in Northeast Washington in which he shot a man, U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips announced.
Edwards was found guilty in June 2016 by a jury in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia of one count of assault with intent to kill while armed, one count of assault with significant bodily injury while armed, two counts of possession of a firearm during a crime of violence, and one count of unlawful possession of a firearm. He was sentenced by the Honorable Anita Josey-Herring. After his prison term, he will be placed on five years of supervised release.
According to the government’s evidence, on Oct. 31, 2015, Edwards arranged to purchase marijuana from the victim, his former coworker. The two men communicated via text message to set up the meeting. Edwards had the victim meet him in the 3100 block of Channing Street, NE. Instead of purchasing marijuana, Edwards-who was wearing a Batman costume-took out a gun and shot the victim in the upper chest. As the victim ran away, Edwards chased him down the street and fired six additional shots, one of which struck the victim in his leg. Fortunately, neither gunshot wound was fatal. The victim was able to identify Edwards by first name within minutes of police arriving on the scene. During its investigation, the government obtained cell site data from Edwards’ phone that placed him in an area consistent with where the shooting took place.
In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Phillips praised the work of those who worked on the case from the Metropolitan Police Department, the District of Columbia Department of Forensic Sciences, and the FBI. He also expressed appreciation to those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Victim/Witness Advocates Jennifer Clark and Jennifer Allen; Litigation Technology Specialists Leif Hickling, Anisha Bhatia and Aneela Bhatia; Investigative Analyst Zachary McMenamin, and Paralegal Specialist Donville Drummond, Nicole McGhee, and Kalisha Johnson-Clark. Finally, he commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kondi Kleinman and Laura Crane, who investigated and prosecuted the case.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
