Defense attorney Albert Amissah told DC Superior Court Judge Rainey Brandt on April 28 that his client, Javarry Peaks, intends to accept a plea agreement offered by the prosecution, as soon as the prosecutor provides the necessary paperwork.
Peaks, 19, is charged with assault with intent to kill while armed, aggravated assault while armed, and two counts of possession of a firearm during a crime of violence. The charges stem from his alleged involvement in a non-fatal shooting at the intersection of 22nd Street and Minnesota Avenue, SE, on March 8. One individual sustained injuries from the incident.
According to arrest documents, a Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) bus driver testified to seeing the defendant shoot the victim in the chest, then exit the bus and run away down the street.
Court documents state that WMATA surveillance footage from inside the bus before the shooting shows the victim talking to an individual identified as Peak who blocks him from leaving his seat, holds onto his backpack, follows him between the back and front of the bus, and pushes him.
The prosecutor told the court that the plea agreement will require Peaks to plead guilty to aggravated assault while armed and possession of a firearm during a crime of violence.
In return, the prosecution will dismiss all other charges related to the case and will waive an enhancement to the charges for committing a crime of violence against a WMATA passenger. According to the prosecutor, that enhancement would have increased the length of Peaks’ prison sentence by one-and-a-half months.
The next hearing in this case is scheduled for May 1.
