Jermaine Knight, 36, of Washington D.C., was sentenced to 43 months in prison after pleading guilty to unlawful possession of a firearm and felony strangulation. The sentencing was announced by U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.
Knight received 20 months for unlawful possession of a firearm due to a prior conviction, and 23 months for felony strangulation. The sentences will be served consecutively, followed by three years of supervised release. Superior Court Judge Andrea Hertzfeld presided over the case.
According to court documents, on October 9, 2024, Knight accidentally shot himself in the thigh while walking his dog and carrying an unregistered ghost gun. Initially, Knight told officers he had been shot by someone else. However, investigators determined that he had shot himself.
While awaiting trial for the firearm offense, Knight assaulted another inmate in a D.C. Superior Court holding cell on December 18, 2024. He struck the other inmate multiple times and strangled him for several seconds before cleaning up blood with sandwich bread.
Chief Pamela Smith of the Metropolitan Police Department and U.S. Marshal Robert A. Dixon joined Pirro in announcing the sentence.
"In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Pirro, Chief Smith, and U.S. Marshal Dixon commended the work of those investigating the case from the Metropolitan Police Department, the U.S. Marshal’s Service, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia. They acknowledged the efforts of Assistant U.S. Attorney Kadian D. Carter, who prosecuted the case."
