WASHINGTON - A 25-year-old man from Forest Heights, Maryland, Donovan Milhouse, has been found guilty of voluntary manslaughter while armed and two weapons offenses for shooting 24-year-old Anthony Washington in the lobby of an apartment building in Northwest Washington, D.C. last December, U.S. Attorney Jeffrey A. Taylor announced today.

Milhouse was found guilty of the charges on October 31, 2008, by a Superior Court jury. At sentencing, the defendant faces a possible penalty of up to 24 years of incarceration under the Superior Court Voluntary Sentencing Guidelines. Sentencing is scheduled for January 13, 2009, before the Honorable Herbert B. Dixon, Jr.

The government's evidence at trial described a confrontation between the defendant and the decedent which occurred at around 4 a.m. on December 30, 2007, in the 3500 block of 14th Street, NW, Washington, D.C. After a verbal confrontation on the street, the two men faced each other in the lobby of the Cavalier Apartment Building, when the defendant drew a gun and shot the decedent in the head and body five times. The evidence indicated that the defendant had been discharged from the Navy approximately three weeks prior to the shooting. The defendant and four of his friends and family members fled the scene after the shooting, and the defendant disposed of the weapon in a creek nearby his home.

Once arrested, the defendant told the police that a third party had been responsible for the shooting. At trial, the defendant testified that he had shot Mr. Washington in self-defense. The Superior Court jury deliberated for three days before delivering a verdict, finding the defendant guilty of Voluntary Manslaughter while Armed, Possession of a Firearm During the Commission of a Crime of Violence or Dangerous Offense and Carrying a Pistol without a License.

In announcing the verdict, Mr. Taylor praised the excellent investigative work and interrogation skills of Metropolitan Police Department Detectives Jed Worrell and Jacqueline Middleton as well as that of Mobile Crime Technician Curtis Lancaster. He also thanked Assistant Medical Examiner Sarah Colvin for her assistance in the case. Lastly, he acknowledged the efforts of Assistant U. S. Attorney Tom Gillice, who is prosecuting the case.