DC Superior Court Judge Deborah J. Israel imposed a fully suspended sentence of six months for a stabbing defendant on Jan. 30.
On Nov. 3, 2025, Qwayne Patterson, 33, pleaded guilty to attempted assault with a dangerous weapon for his involvement in a stabbing that injured one man on Oct. 16, 2025 on the 4400 block of Barnaby Road, SE.
At the hearing, the prosecution suggested a sentence of six months’ incarceration followed by three years of supervised release due to the seriousness of the crime.
Patterson’s defense attorney, Daniel Kovler, requested a fully suspended sentence except for the 17 days that the defendant had already served at the DC Jail, and asked for 24 months of supervised probation. Kovler reported that Patterson had exhibited good compliance, and that the incident had been a matter of “two seconds” of uncharacteristic behavior for which Patterson immediately apologized and took responsibility.
Kovler also disclosed that although Patterson is a legal resident of the United States, he has not yet obtained U.S. citizenship, and this incident prevent his application for at least five years, which Kovler stated would be punishment enough for his client.
Patterson expressed his regret for the crime. Judge Israel acknowledged his statement as genuine, and commended his compliant and respectful behavior throughout the legal process following his arrest.
As a result, Judge Israel imposed a fully suspended sentence of six months in favor of 24 months of supervised probation, with the condition that it could be converted to unsupervised probation at 12 months if Patterson exhibited compliance.
Patterson received an additional, fully suspended sentence of 180 days in favor of 24 months of unsupervised probation for a misdemeanor charge stemming from an unrelated matter.
No further hearings have been scheduled at this time.
