During a felony status conference, a murder defendant pleaded guilty to manslaughter. He was initially charged with first-degree murder while armed.
Policarpo Casarrubias-Rodriguez pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter while armed for fatally stabbing his roommate, 37-year-old Israel Gomez on the 3100 block of 16th Street, NW on Sept. 9, 2018.
Contingent on the judge’s approval, Casarrubias-Rodriguez, 44, could be sentenced from 7.5 years to 14 years in prison.
According to court documents, prior to the stabbing, Casarrubias-Rodriguez and Gomez got into a physical altercation stemming from a dispute over a chair. After the fight was over, Casarrubias-Rodriguez got a knife and stabbed Gomez once in the back. D.C. Witness previously reported that a judge said the defendant confessed to the crime after he was arrested.
Casarrubias-Rodriguez is scheduled to be sentenced on April 26.
