Ricardo Rush, a 29-year-old resident of the District of Columbia and previously convicted felon, has been sentenced to five years in prison following an incident on a Metrobus in March 2025. The sentencing was announced by U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.
Rush pleaded guilty on June 17 before Judge Amir H. Ali to several charges: unlawful possession of a firearm and ammunition by a felon, assault with a dangerous weapon, and possession of a firearm during a crime of violence or dangerous offense. In addition to the 60-month prison sentence, Judge Ali ordered Rush to serve three years of supervised release.
According to court documents, the incident occurred on March 8, 2025. Rush boarded a WMATA bus at approximately 11:26 a.m. Shortly after, a family—two parents and their two young children—also boarded the bus. Rush began harassing them and then escalated the situation by standing up, stating “Bitch, sit down, this isn’t a toy,” and pointing what appeared to be an Uzi-style semi-automatic pistol at the woman’s face.
The bus pulled over as Rush continued to intimidate the family, waving his gun and threatening to kill all four members. He exited the bus briefly but returned moments later to threaten them again while pointing his firearm at the man and head-butting him before fleeing.
Law enforcement located Rush at his residence on April 10, 2025. Officers recovered a loaded MasterPiece Arms Defender semi-automatic handgun with one round in the chamber and an attached high-capacity magazine containing 18 rounds. Another magazine holding 13 rounds was also found.
Rush had previously been convicted in Superior Court in 2021 for assault with a dangerous weapon and was legally prohibited from possessing firearms due to his felony status.
The case was investigated by WMATA and the Metropolitan Police Department. Prosecution was handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jared English and Special Assistant Haley Pennington.
