Eric Lemus, a 20-year-old from Washington, D.C., has been sentenced to a nine-year prison term for a shooting that injured two minors in the Northwest quadrant of the city. According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, on March 22, 2023, Lemus engaged in a violent confrontation at Park Road Park in Columbia Heights, pulling out a handgun and firing at the two victims until his ammo was spent. Facing charges of assault with intent to kill while armed and possession of a firearm during a crime of violence, Lemus had pleaded guilty earlier this February.
On Thursday, U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves and MPD Chief Pamela Smith announced the sentencing, handled by Judge Maribeth Raffinan. While the prosecution pushed for a sentence of 219 months--a stark 18.25 years behind bars--the Court peeled back this request, handing down 108 months of incarceration with an additional 39 months suspended and two years of supervised probation under the Youth Rehabilitation Act. Even as the magazine was emptied during the assault, Lemus attempted to flee. Still, officers with the Metropolitan Police Department, who located the handgun inside his sweatshirt pocket, prevented his escape. The U.S. Attorney's Office announcement detailed this critical information from the case.
The incident, which resulted in gunshot wounds to two youths aged 15 and 17, was captured in a chilling video by an eyewitness at the park. Graves and Smith offered commendations for the investigative efforts of the Metropolitan Police Department and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Caroline Coates Huether and Carlos A. Valdivia, whose work also received accolades in the sentencing's aftermath.
