Washington, D.C. – Twenty-five-year-old Reginald Bryson, also known as Reginald Muschette, of the 700 block of Rock Creek Church Road, NW, Washington, D.C., has been sentenced to a total of 50 years in prison for his role in the January 2004 triple shooting in Northwest Washington, D.C., that resulted in the murder of 17-year-old Franklin Smith, U.S. Attorney Jeffrey A. Taylor announced today.

Bryson received his sentence on September 12, 2008, before the Honorable Neal E. Kravitz of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. The sentence follows a trial jury’s return of guilty verdicts, on July 15, 2008, of First Degree Murder while Armed, two counts of Assault with Intent to Kill while Armed, Possession of a Firearm During a Crime of Violence, Carrying a Pistol without a License, Obstructing Justice, and Threats.

According to the evidence elicited at the trial, on January 19, 2004, Martin Luther King, Jr.’s Holiday, at approximately 3:18 p.m., 17-year-old Franklin Smith, who was accompanied by two friends, was driving a brown Chrysler Lebaron in the 400 block of Taylor Street, NW, when he passed a champagne Mazda Protégé that was occupied by Bryson, who was armed with two pistols, and driven by his cousin, Terrance Stroman. Bryson suddenly directed his cousin Stroman to drive to the 400 block of Shepherd Street, NW, where the defendant laid in waiting for Franklin Smith’s Chrysler Lebaron to enter that block. As Franklin Smith passed the defendant, the defendant ambushed Mr. Smith and his two passengers by opening fire on their car. Franklin Smith suffered a gunshot to his head killing him almost instantly. Mr. Smith’s two passengers were also shot; but, fortunately, they survived their injuries.

The investigation into this triple shooting was extensive. The Fourth District Focus Mission Unit recovered the murder weapon during the execution of a search warrant at the home of a known associate of Reginald Bryson ten days following the shooting. Moreover, based on an eyewitness’s partial tag of the getaway car, police corroborated, with the assistance of the Maryland Vehicle Administration, Stroman’s possession of the vehicle. During this investigation, it was discovered that Bryson attempted to silence a witness against him through threats and intimidation.

Bryson’s cousin, Terrance Stroman, 29, has pled guilty to various charges for his role in this incident.

In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Taylor praised the outstanding work of Metropolitan Police Department Violent Crime Branch Detectives Christopher Kauffman, Robert Alder, Kimberly Lawrence, Harbin Combee, and Lee Littlejohn; and Forensic Science Division Technicians Dwayne Mitchell, Valerie Campbell, David Murray, and Charles Egan. He also commended the exceptional work of Fourth District Officers Kristen Thorne, Lucius Kearney, Michael Eames, and Anthony Attardo; Narcotics and Special Investigations Division Detective Earl Delauder and Officers Joseph Abdalla, Michael Iannacchione, and Darrick Wallace; Fifth District Sergeant Thomas Fontz; and Deputy U.S. Marshal Patrick Brennan. Finally, he recognized the tremendous and relentless work of the many members of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, including Paralegals Lenney Lowe, Anthony Griffith, and Richard Cheatham; Legal Assistant Doloris Young; Litigation Support Specialists Joe Calvares, Thomas Royal, Kimberly Smith, and Errol Spears; and Victim/Witness Advocates Marcia L. Rinker, Yvonne Bryant and Katina Adams; and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michelle D. Jackson and Courtney Spivey who prosecuted the case.