Damien Charles Dates, of Woodbury, faces a felony charge in connection with a May shooting in Minneapolis that wounded a man in the leg. Prosecutors allege that phone records, GPS data and a rented sedan link Dates to the incident. The charge, aiding and abetting second-degree assault with a dangerous weapon, was filed this week in Hennepin County District Court.
What Minnesota’s Accomplice-Liability Law Requires
According to the Minnesota Revisor of Statutes, a person may be liable for another person’s crime by intentionally aiding, advising, hiring, counseling, conspiring with or otherwise procuring that person to commit it. The statute sets out the intentional-assistance standard; the charge against Dates is an allegation, not a finding of guilt. The statute also provides that a person is not liable under this section if the person abandons the criminal purpose and makes a reasonable effort to prevent the crime before it is committed, even if the crime occurs afterward.
The complaint, as described by MN Crime, stems from a shooting reported May 14 on the 4700 block of Emerson Avenue North. Minneapolis police found the victim outside a residence with a gunshot wound to the right leg. He was taken to North Memorial Hospital for treatment.
Victim Describes a Deal That Turned Violent
According to the complaint, the victim told officers that he and a cousin were in a vehicle trying to buy something from another person in the car when someone drew a firearm and took his money. The victim said he got out and ran before being shot. A witness told police that the victim and an unidentified suspect argued before three shots were fired.
That witness described the victim driving a Chevy Equinox while the unidentified suspect sat in a light blue Chevy sedan, possibly an Impala, the report states. Surveillance video reviewed by investigators showed the Equinox parked in front of the residence with a sedan behind it, and footage captured the victim near that sedan before he fled on foot. Officers later recovered a bullet fragment near where the vehicles had been parked.
Witnesses Tie Dates to the Scene
The complaint account says investigators used a photograph provided by the victim to identify a person who was dating one of the unidentified suspects. That person was identified as dating Dates. A separate witness identified Dates by the nickname “Lil Dee,” and the first witness told police Dates was in the front passenger seat of the blue sedan when the victim was shot.
Investigators also reviewed the victim’s phone, which showed communications with Dates about arranging a transaction on May 14, the outlet reported. The complaint describes messages sent before and after the shooting as evidence that Dates set up the deal.
Rental Records and GPS Data Cited in the Case
The complaint account also describes rental and location records. Rental records showed that an associate of Dates rented a blue Chevrolet Malibu with a Colorado license plate on May 12 and returned it at 4:35 p.m. on May 14. The associate reportedly told investigators the car had been rented for Dates.
A forensic examination of Dates’s phone showed calls and messages immediately before and after the shooting, according to the report. Investigators said GPS data placed the phone near the scene and later near the rental car company. The report did not say whether Dates had entered a plea or had legal representation.
What the Charge Carries
Minnesota law classifies assault with a dangerous weapon as a felony. Under state statute, a person convicted of the offense can face up to seven years in prison, a fine of up to $14,000, or both. The state’s aiding-and-abetting statute provides an exception when a person abandons the criminal purpose and makes a reasonable effort to prevent the crime before it occurs, but the crime is committed anyway.
Felony cases in Minneapolis and Hennepin County’s 44 other cities proceed through the Fourth Judicial District. The district’s Hennepin County Government Center is in downtown Minneapolis. Hennepin County is Minnesota’s most populous jurisdiction, and its county attorney’s office handles felony prosecutions.
