On Dec. 17, the same day Carlton Simon, 20, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder while armed, he sent a handwritten note to DC Superior Court Judge Todd Edelman saying he wanted to reverse course—not only to plead innocent but also get a new lawyer.
“I beg you,” wrote Simon.
However, after a brief conference at the bench with his lawyer, Kevin Irving, on Jan. 8, Simon again changed his mind and withdrew his request to abandon the guilty plea in return for waiving an indictment on greater charges.
Simon was originally charged with second-degree murder while armed for his alleged involvement in the fatal shooting of 17-year-old Angel Dominguez on May 29 on the 900 block of Florida Avenue, NW. Dominguez sustained five gunshot wounds to his chest, calf, thigh, knee, and forearm.
“I was really scared, honestly. I feel like I was peer pressured by my lawyer to take that plea,” wrote Simon. Simon maintained Irving was only focused on the sentencing guidelines, not the defendant’s mental health. In the one page note, he asked the judge to transfer his case to mental health court.
However, Simon said his lawyer told him that couldn’t happen. “Why I don’t know. I asked him why…but he always has some maneuver around what I be asking him,” wrote Simon.
Addressing Simon’s concerns, Judge Edelman said DC’s Mental Health Community Court only handles misdemeanors and that Simon’s case is “not close to being eligible.”
There was no mention about whether Irving would continue to represent Simon. HIs sentencing remains set for Feb. 20.
