Judge Believes in Domestic Violence Defendant’s Success, Places Her on Probation

By D.C. Witness Staff - January 4, 2021
Daily Stories | Homicides | stabbing | Suspects | Victims |

On Jan. 4, a DC Superior Court Judge placed a domestic violence defendant on probation because he said he believes in her ability to succeed.

The defendant, an adult female, pleaded guilty to a felony charge for attempted assault and a misdemeanor charge for cruelty to animals on Nov. 3, 2020.

On Jan. 18 of 2020, the defendant got into a fight with an acquaintance and threw a knife at the victim’s face, which caused a laceration. Then, the defendant stabbed a dog, known as Kingsley, twice in the chest.

During the hearing, Judge Michael Ryan said the defendant told him that she used much more force than was necessary to defend herself in the situation. Given her statement and the prosecution’s proffer of facts, he accepted her guilty plea.

The defendant’s defense counsel, Peter Cooper, asked the judge to sentence her to the time she has already served in DC Jail with one year of probation instead of being placed on supervised release. 

He requested probation over parole because of how violations or suspected violations are handled in DC. Under probation, a violation is handled by the judge who has overseen the case from beginning to sentencing, while parole violations are handled by the parole board and necessitate immediate incarceration before review. 

The prosecution differed only slightly from the defense’s request, asking for parole instead of probation.

The prosecutor said the defendant had already been on probation twice and failed both times for DUI and destruction of property convictions. The prosecutor said parole would be more appropriate.

Judge Ryan weighed both sides but ultimately agreed with defense counsel to allow the defendant to be placed on probation.

“I do see this assault as a serious one. I also see this as an opportunity for a person to change. It is a significant period of time that she has been incarcerated,” said Judge Ryan, noting that the defendant has been on lockdown for the majority of her time at DC Jail due to COVID-19.

“In my mind, the most important thing for you, is that you need to take a domestic violence intervention program,” he said. He also referred to her use of alcohol, which seems to be an underlying issue in her cases.

The prosecution mentioned that there is no victim impact statement because the victim did not want to “re-hash the emotional and traumatic experience.”

The defendant apologized to the victim and everyone else she hurt. “I’m ready to move forward and focus on my future,” mentioning her career and her daughter.

For the attempted assault charge, Judge Ryan sentenced the defendant to 15 months of incarceration, all of which were suspended except for the time the defendant has already served.

He also ordered one year of supervised probation, with conditions to complete a domestic violence intervention program, alcohol and substance abuse testing and treatment, mental health evaluation and treatment, as dictated by the assessment and pay $150 to the Crime Victims Fund.

For the cruelty to animals misdemeanor, the judge sentenced the defendant to 90 days, which has already been served.

“I expect you to have the ability to succeed, or I wouldn’t take you on for probation,” Judge Ryan said.

A review hearing was set for April 7 to make sure the defendant has enrolled in the appropriate programming.