Two Men Found Guilty of Aggravated Assault While Armed in Connection with 2012 Shooting in Northwest Washington
Bullets Fired into a Block Crowded with Adults and Children

WASHINGTON—Carlito Bailey, 22, and Rickey Watkins, 22, both of Washington D.C., were found guilty by a jury on October 11, 2013, of charges stemming from a shooting in Northwest Washington, U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen, Jr. announced.

Bailey and Watkins were found guilty following a trial in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia of aggravated assault, assault with a dangerous weapon, and related firearms offenses. They are to be sentenced on December 10, 2013, by the Honorable Robert I. Richter.

According to the government’s evidence, on the night of May 5, 2012, Bailey, Watkins, and a third unidentified shooter traveled to Northwest Washington armed with firearms. The three men approached the intersection of Johnson Avenue and R Street NW, where they opened fire, shooting at least 10 bullets into a block crowded with adults and children gathered to celebrate a birthday party. One of the adults was shot several times in the legs. After firing the shots, the men fled on Johnson Avenue.

Bailey and Watkins were apprehended approximately 24 minutes after the shooting in a car with two firearms. One of the firearms was a ballistics match to six shell casings and a bullet from the crime scene, and a swab from the slide of that weapon yielded DNA that matched the DNA profile of Bailey. Cell site data placed Watkins at the scene of the shooting.

In announcing the verdicts, U.S. Attorney Machen commended the work of the Metropolitan Police Department Second District officers who apprehended the defendants and recovered the key evidence shortly after the shooting, as well as the Third District detectives who investigated the case. He also praised FBI Special Agent Kevin Horan for his valuable work analyzing cell phone records and testifying as a government expert at trial. In addition, he commended those who handled the case for the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Litigation Technology Specialists Joe Calvarese, Kimberly Smith, and Ron Royal and Paralegal Specialists Allison Daniels and Mia Beamon. Finally, he acknowledged the efforts of Assistant U.S. Attorney Ephraim (Fry) Wernick and former Assistant U.S. Attorney Mary Chris Dobbie, who indicted the case, and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Ann Carroll and Jonathan Kravis, who prosecuted the case.