DC Superior Court Judge Errol Arthur sentenced a shooting defendant to 24 months in prison on April 7.
Wilson Dodson, 45, pleaded guilty to assault with a dangerous weapon and unlawful possession of a firearm with a prior conviction on Dec. 16, 2025 for his involvement in a non-fatal shooting that occurred near Sela Public Charter Elementary School at the intersection of Peabody Street and Chillum Place, NE, on May 22, 2025.
According to the prosecution the victim and his family went to Dodson’s house to retrieve the victim’s motorcycle. Dodson’s family chased them away with threats before Dodson ran out of his house with a firearm. Dodson found the victim and his family, including a child, a block away before firing five shots at them. No injuries were reported.
The prosecution said there were aggravating factors Judge Arthur needed to consider during sentencing, explaining how Dodson threatened to call the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on the victims. They added that Dodson also shot towards a school behind during a time when parents were picking up their children.
The prosecution requested that Dodson be sentenced to 32 months for assault with a dangerous weapon and 12 months for unlawful possession of a firearm and including three years of supervised release. According to the prosecution, Dodson immediately took responsibility for the crime which they stated was taken into consideration when requesting a sentence.
Charles Haskell, Dodson’s attorney, stated that his client felt great regret and took immediate responsibility. Haskell explained that Dodson was well-known in the community and often helped people with car troubles. He also pointed out Dodson’s limited criminal history, stating he only has one prior misdemeanor offense.
“My father’s been my only support system,” Dodson’s son said during the hearing, “This is just a mix-up, a misunderstanding really.”
Haskell asked Judge Arthur to sentence Dodson to 18 months in prison, suspending all but 12 months.
“I wish I could go back to that day and choose a different route,” Dodson told Judge Arthur.
Judge Arthur took Dodson’s immediate responsibility into account, confident that Dodson truly regretted his actions. However, Judge Arthur acknowledged the seriousness of the conduct, referring to how Dodson fired shots in a densely populated public area near a school, and that there was a child present.
“It’s unfortunate that one situation escalated to you getting incarcerated,” Judge Arthur told Dodson.
He also stated that Dodson wasn’t allowed to have a firearm during the time of the offense, stating that doing so forced him to sentence Dodson to mandatory jail time. He warned Dodson that if he chose to possess a firearm again after this that he would be subject to three years of mandatory jail time.
“You chose to point a firearm and shoot at people,” Judge Arthur stated, “That I cannot ignore.”
Judge Arthur sentenced Dodson to 32 months with all but 24 months suspended for assault with a dangerous weapon and 18 months with all but 12 months suspended for unlawful possession of a firearm to run concurrently.
After his imprisonment, Dodson will be required to serve one year supervised probation and register as a gun offender.
No further dates were set.
