Jury Aquits Homicide Defendant on Almost All Charges in 2018 Drive-By Shooting

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A jury found a homicide defendant not guilty of all charges except for obstruction of justice in connection to a 2018 drive-by shooting that killed one person and injured three others.

Torey Stockton, 24, was accused of killing 23-year-old Jasmine Light on Jan. 17, 2018, by shooting into a crowd outside of a convenience store on the 1500 block of U Street, SE.

Returning its verdict on July 21, the jury found Stockton not guilty of first-degree or second-degree murder while armed, three counts of assault with intent to kill while armed and four counts of possession of a firearm during a crime of violence.

The jury did, however, find Stockton guilty of obstruction of justice for calling his then-girlfriend, Kayla Thompson, from the DC Jail and asking her to delete incriminating evidence from his social media accounts.

Thompson also faced an obstruction of justice charge as Stockton’s co-defendant for erasing social media evidence but was found not guilty by the jury.

Light’s family attended the hearing virtually via WebEx. The trial began July 7. Deliberations began July 19.

Defense attorney Rachel McCoy asked for Stockton’s release as he awaits the sentencing date. He has been detained since his arrest in June 2018.

DC Superior Court Judge Marisa Demeo rejected this request, referring to pending felony charges, including, as the prosecutor described, “multiple counts of assault on a police officer.”

“We would be very concerned about his release into the community at this point,” one of the two prosecutors said.

Judge Demeo scheduled the sentencing for Sept. 16.

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