Woman Sentenced to Eight Years After Shooting Paralyzes Victim

By Rebecca Connor [former] - July 21, 2023
Daily Stories | Non-Fatal Shooting |

On July 21, DC Superior Court Judge Anthony Epstein sentenced Dasani Dawson to eight years in prison and five years of supervised release. 

Dawson, 19, was sentenced after pleading guilty to aggravated assault knowingly while armed and possession of a firearm during a crime of violence (PFCOV) for shooting a single victim seven times on Aug. 4, 2022 on the 800 block of Chesapeake Street, SE.

The defendant was originally charged with assault with intent to kill and PFCOV, but the first charge was reduced when she pled guilty on Apr. 21. 

After suffering multiple gunshot injuries to the spine, the victim was paralyzed, an injury that the prosecution argued has significantly affected his quality of life and the wellbeing of his family. 

Several of the victim’s family members attended the sentencing, with the prosecution calling his mother to testify how the defendant’s actions have altered their lives. 

The victim’s mother stated he now requires intensive care from the family, and that they live in a housing unit which is not accessible for the disabled which has made travel difficult for the victim. 

Judge Epstein thanked the victim’s mother for her statement, and said that due to the severity of his injuries “it’s a miracle that your son is still with us.” 

The prosecution further emphasized the immense impact Dawson’s actions had on the victim’s family, saying that “he will never stand up again” due to the defendant’s “calculated and egregious” conduct. 

Comments by detectives on the case alleged that Dawson had “been terrorizing the community for years.”

Defense attorney Lisbeth Sapirstein argued that Dawson’s conduct during the shooting was largely unintentional, and that she had only meant to threaten the victim with a gun but instead fired a semi-automatic weapon, which is why the victim was shot multiple times. 

Sapirstein also attempted to convince the court to sentence Dawson under the Youth Rehabilitation Act (YRA), which potentially allows for a defendant’s conviction to be eventually sealed. 

Dawson also apologized to the victim’s mother in court, saying that, “Everyday I regret doing it.”

Despite the defendant’s apology, Judge Epstein still declined to sentence Dawson under the YRA, saying that “only a tiny fraction of 18-year-olds commit the kind of crime that [Dawson] did.”

Judge Epstein sentenced Dawson to eight years for each of her two counts set to run concurrently. 

He also sentenced her to five years of supervised release.

Dawson will also be required to seek mental health treatment and anger management programs while in prison and register as a gun offender when she is released.