Plea Deal in Domestic Violence Case Falls Apart

By D.C. Witness Staff - August 28, 2020
Court | Daily Stories | Homicides | Suspects | Victims |

A DC Superior Court judge continued a domestic violence case after a plea deal fell through.

The 21-year-old defendant is charged with simple assault, attempted threats and obstruction.

The defense was going to enter a plea deal with the prosecution during the Aug. 28 hearing. However, the defendant did not agree with the prosecution’s description of the crime.

Judge John McCabe agreed to schedule a new hearing on Nov. 15 to discuss how to move forward with the case.

The original agreement was that the defendant would plead guilty to obstruction of justice and attempted threats. In exchange, the prosecution would drop the simple assault charge. 

According to the prosecution’s initial description of the events, the defendant threatened to kill the victim with a knife during an argument on May 28. When the victim tried to call 911, the defendant allegedly took the phone from her and threw it across the room. 

The defendant did not agree with this depiction. After a phone call with his attorney, parties reached a new agreement in which the defendant would plead guilty to simple assault and attempted threats in exchange for the obstruction charge being dropped.

The prosecution amended their description of the events to reflect that the defendant was arguing with the victim and threatened her with a knife, not mentioning the 911 call. However, the defendant did not agree to this either. 

Defense attorney Corrine Schultz said her client was having trouble with his recollection of the events. She said that the defendant has a mental health appointment soon, and that once he is back on his medication for a while, his thinking will likely be more clear so that he can come to a decision about his case. 

In the meantime, the defendant will remain released on his promise to return to court. He must also comply with a stay away order.