Home Washington Press Releases 2009 District Man Sentenced to 18 Years in Prison for Kidnapping and Sexually Assaulting Stranger
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District Man Sentenced to 18 Years in Prison for Kidnapping and Sexually Assaulting Stranger

U.S. Attorney’s Office October 19, 2009
  • District of Columbia (202) 252-6933

WASHINGTON—A Superior Court judge sentenced Steven Johnson, 19, to 18 years of incarceration for abducting a woman off the street and then, along with another man, taking turns raping her in July of 2008, Acting U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips announced today. The Honorable Frederick Weisberg imposed the sentence on Friday, October 16, 2009. A Superior Court jury found Steven Johnson guilty of kidnapping and two counts of first degree sexual abuse after a two-week trial in June of this year. In addition to his sentence, the defendant will be required upon his release from prison to register for life as a sex offender under District of Columbia law.

According to the government’s evidence at trial, on July 31, 2008, the defendant, who was 18 years old at the time of this offense, and two other men were driving in a silver KIA Optima when they approached the 18-year-old victim, who was walking to a friend’s house. The defendant and his co-defendant, Marcel Johnson, forced the victim into their car and drove her to an alley in the rear of the 200 block of Randolph Place, NE. In the alley, the two men each took turns raping the victim.

Steven Johnson and Marcel Johnson were each convicted during separate trials. Marcel Johnson, who was 17 years old and charged as an adult, was also sentenced to 18 years by Judge Weisberg on May 15, 2009.

In announcing the sentence, Acting U.S. Attorney Phillips praised the outstanding work of the lead Detective Ingrid Harkins of the Metropolitan Police Department, who was supported by a team of dedicated individuals from numerous law enforcement agencies. Acting U.S. Attorney Phillips also acknowledged the hard work of Metropolitan Police Department Detectives Wallace Carmichael, Randal Parker, Randy Brooks, Todd Amis, Anthony Commodore and Leon Epps, Sergeants Kevin Rice and George Gray, Officer Georgette Littlejohn, Evidence Technicians Richard Steven Griffin, Ronald Royster, Dwayne Mitchell, Natasha Pettus and Valerie Campbell, Fingerprint Examiner Willie Higginbothem, Trace Evidence Examiner Harold Deadman, Evidence Operations Supervisor Douglas Deedrick, and Krystyna Hopkinson of the MPD Crime Lab. He also recognized the outstanding collaboration of other Federal and local law enforcement partners, including: Deputy U.S. Marshals Richard Kelly, Roger Wilson, Martin Flynn, Jay Ciambrone, William Straw, Stephen Marks, Justin Engen and Stephen Barros and Inspectors Christopher Street, Brian Sheppard and Andrew Smith of the U.S. Marshals Service, along with Deputy Alex Maldonado of the Prince George’s County Sheriff’s Office, DNA Examiner Nicole Nicklow of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, EMT/Firefighters Ericeka Dixon and Whitney Ward of the District of Columbia Fire and Emergency Medical Services Department, Tammie Creamer of the District of Columbia Office of Unified Communications, and Investigator Durand Odom of the U.S. Attorney’s Office. In addition, Acting U.S. Attorney Phillips acknowledged the support of Victim Advocates Iris Vega and Tracey Hawkins, Victim Service Coordinators La June Thames and Katina Adams, Paralegal Specialists Cynthia Muhammad, Kristy Kropfelder and Eugena Johnson, Legal Assistants Donice Adams, Tiffany Jones and Charmonique Price, Criminal Intelligence Specialist Sharon Johnson, and the entire Litigation Technology Support Unit. Finally, the Acting U.S. Attorney commended the hard work and dedication of Assistant U.S. Attorneys David M. Rubenstein and Michelle Zamarin, who prosecuted the case.

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