A D.C. teenager with a history of violent juvenile cases was sentenced Friday to two and a half years in prison for an armed robbery and shooting that left a man wounded on 8th Street NE last May. The relatively short term was handed down in Superior Court after prosecutors said the teen escaped a Pennsylvania juvenile facility and returned to the District before the attack. His co-defendant received the same sentence.
Sentence And The May Robbery
As reported by FOX 5 DC, Daijon Bourn was sentenced to two and a half years for a May 18 incident in which prosecutors say a victim was shot multiple times with a semiautomatic rifle and robbed of a Cartier watch on 8th Street NE. The victim told the court that his life had been permanently changed by the injuries. In court, the judge read a statement from Bourn in which he apologized and expressed remorse, although the statement did not address his earlier juvenile cases.
Escape From Pennsylvania And Prior Convictions
According to The Washington Post, Bourn and two other youths absconded from the Clock Tower School, a D.C. Department of Youth Rehabilitation Services contractor in Pennsylvania, then stole a red Land Rover and returned to Washington, where the robbery and shooting occurred. The Post also reports that Bourn previously pleaded guilty as a juvenile to voluntary manslaughter in the 2022 killing of 15-year-old Andre Robertson and to attempted robbery in the 2022 attempted carjacking that wounded Washington Commanders running back Brian Robinson Jr.
Co-Defendant And Weapon Allegations
FOX 5 DC says Bourn’s co-defendant, 20-year-old Jamel Hawkins, was also given a two-and-a-half-year term and that prosecutors contend Hawkins fired the weapon used during the robbery. Authorities previously arrested Hawkins and recovered an AR-15 after police stopped the stolen SUV on Alabama Avenue SE, according to reporting tied to the case.
Why The Case Matters Locally
The episode has renewed questions about secure placements for adjudicated youth and the risks that escapes pose to communities and victims. The Washington Post quoted victims’ family members and the mother of Andre Robertson, who said the escape and new violence had re-traumatized their family, a reminder of the long ripple effects these cases generate in neighborhoods.
