Driver Pleads Guilty to Vehicular Homicide

By D.C. Witness Staff - June 28, 2019
Court | Daily Stories | Homicides | Suspects |

After speeding through two stop signs and causing a fatal collision at the intersection of 16th Street and V Street, SE, a man is set to be sentenced to 4.5 years in prison.

During a preliminary hearing June 28, Dejuan Andre Marshall pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter and assault with significant bodily injury for his involvement in a vehicular collision that caused the death of 31-year-old Abdul Seck on April 21.

Both the prosecution and defense agreed on a set punishment for the defendant. According to the plea agreement, which was accepted by DC Superior Court Judge Ronna Beck, Marshall will be sentenced to four years in prison for manslaughter and a half of year (6-months) for assault.

Without the plea agreement, Marshall, 21, could have faced a maximum of  30 years in prison for manslaughter and three years in prison for assault, according to the District of Columbia Sentencing Commission’s Voluntary Sentencing Guidelines.

Court documents state that during the afternoon on April 21, a witness saw Marshall involved in an argument with a woman whose identity was not shared in open court. After the argument, a witness said Marshall sped away in his vehicle, a Chevrolet Cruze, down V Street.

Marshall’s car sped through two stops signs and entered the intersection at 16th and V Street, SE when another car, a Chevrolet Malibu, was struck by Marshall’s car, according to the documents

. The Malibu became airborne, partially rolled over and came to rest on the driver’s side. Through the commotion, Seck, who was on a sidewalk near the intersection at the time, was struck, documents state.

Seck suffered form massive body trauma, and the driver of the Malibu suffered from head injuries that required surgery.

Apparently, there were three other passengers in the Malibu, including one adult and two children. The other adult was also treated for head injuries and the children were treated for cuts.

The driver of the Malibu was in a coma for three weeks, according to the prosecution.

On Sept. 6 Marshall was sentenced to four years for voluntary manslaughter and six months for assault with significant bodily injury.