Defendant Given More Time to Comply with Pretrial Release

By D.C. Witness Staff - August 10, 2020
Court | Daily Stories | Homicides | Suspects | Victims |

A DC Superior Court judge continued a hearing to monitor the defendant’s compliance with his pretrial release conditions. 

Darrious Sadler is charged with unlawful possession of a firearm with a prior conviction. Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) officers arrested him on Feb. 25 after they received a report that he had a firearm in his waistband on the 400 block of Rhode Island Avenue, NE, according to court documents.

Sadler, 20, was released into the High Intensity Supervision Program (HISP) in March. Since then, he allegedly violated the conditions of his pretrial release on multiple occasions. 

During a July 31 hearing, a Pretrial Services Agency (PSA) representative said the defendant was “in serious violation of his home confinement condition.” That hearing was continued to give Sadler another chance to show up to court, despite the prosecution’s request for a bench warrant. 

The defendant was present for the Aug. 7 hearing. 

During that hearing, the prosecution asked Judge Gerald Fisher to revoke Sadler’s HISP and hold him in DC Jail. The prosecutor said the home confinement requirement was implemented to keep the community safe, and that if the defendant is not abiding by that requirement, “the GPS requirement is not doing what it needs to do to keep the community safe.”

However, defense attorney Kevin Robertson said his client’s noncompliance is not his fault.

Robertson said the defendant had to relocate several times while on HISP, and that the person with whom he is currently staying will not allow him to be inside of their home while they are not there.

Other violations, Robertson said, are a result of the defendant’s inability to get into contact with his PSA representative in order to ask for permission to get food.

“I think it is important [for] the court to recognize that his efforts are there,” Robertson said.

Judge Fisher continued the hearing until Sept. 1. He said that if Sadler is able to come into full compliance, his release conditions might be lowered. However, if Sadler is not able to come into compliance, Judge Fisher said he may revoke his HISP.