Former Probation Officer Convicted of Obstruction of Justice
- Defendant Tried to Mislead Police About Boyfriend’s Involvement in a Shooting -

     WASHINGTON – Lakeisha Scott, 31, of Capitol Heights, Md., has been convicted by a jury of obstructing justice in connection with her testimony before a grand jury investigating a shooting committed by her boyfriend, U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. announced today.

     Scott was convicted on April 9, 2012 of obstruction of justice. The verdict followed a trial in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. The jury was unable to reach a verdict on a second charge of perjury. The Honorable Heidi M. Pasichow scheduled a hearing for April 20, 2012, when a sentencing date is to be set. Scott faces up to 30 years in prison.

     At the time of the offense, Scott was a probation officer for the Court Services and Offender Supervision Agency (CSOSA). The charge stemmed from her grand jury testimony providing an alibi for her boyfriend in a shooting case. Following Scott’s indictment, the boyfriend pled guilty to assault with a dangerous weapon in connection with the shooting incident.

     According to evidence introduced at trial, during the early morning of January 16, 2011, Scott’s boyfriend was with her at her home in Capitol Heights when Scott learned that he was involved with another woman. The other woman kept calling a phone belonging to Scott’s boyfriend. He did not answer the calls, but Scott did, and then learned of the relationship.

     Following this conversation, Scott’s boyfriend left her home and traveled to the other woman’s residence in Southeast Washington. Then, at 6:25 a.m., he got out of his car and approached the woman’s residence in an apartment building. After seeing her in the window, he pulled out a gun and fired 11 rounds into the side of the building. The woman, who was not injured, reported to the police that she was on the phone with Scott at the time of the shooting.

     In the minutes after the shooting, Scott called her boyfriend numerous times and, unable to reach him, called the shooting victim back and spent over 10 minutes on the phone with her.

     When Scott’s boyfriend was arrested and interviewed by a detective with the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD), he maintained that he was with Scott all morning and that she would confirm his whereabouts. Scott later spoke with a detective and said that she did not know anything about a shooting. She also stated that her boyfriend was with her all morning, except for 10 minutes. Later, when Scott appeared before the grand jury investigating the shooting, she testified that her boyfriend was with her in Capitol Heights all morning except for a 10-minute window that did not include the time of the shooting.

     In announcing the verdict, U.S. Attorney Machen commended the work of the MPD, especially Detective Jonathan Shell. He also commended the efforts of Deputy U.S. Marshal Reuben Smith of the U.S. Marshals Service and MPD Detective Greggory Pemberton, who assisted with locating an essential witness for trial. U.S. Attorney Machen also thanked those who worked on the case for the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialists Jason Manuel and Donhue Griffith, Legal Assistant Nicole Lee, the Litigation Technology Unit, and the Victim Witness Assistance Unit. Finally, he praised the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Lindsay Suttenberg and Angela Pegram Saffoe, who investigated and indicted the case, and Lauren Bates, who prosecuted the case.

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