U.S. Department
of Justice
District Man Sentenced to 18-Month Prison Term for Sexually Assaulting Fellow Passenger After Getting Off a Metrobus
WASHINGTON – Justin Quentin Taylor, 20, of the District, was sentenced today to 18 months in prison for sexually assaulting a stranger after the two got off a Metrobus, U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu announced today.
Taylor pled guilty in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia in March 2019, to attempted third degree sexual abuse. He was sentenced by the Honorable Danya A. Dayson to 18 months in prison. Following his prison term, he will be placed on supervised release for seven years and will have to register as a sex offender for ten years.
According to the government’s evidence at the plea hearing, in the early morning hours of December 10, 2018, both Taylor and the victim were passengers on the same city bus. They did not know one another. They both got off the bus on 48th Street, N.E. in the District. While in the 1300 block of 48th Street N.E., the Taylor walked past the victim, then stopped directly in front of her and asked her for directions, asked whether he could use her phone and asked the woman whether she could help him with his “button.” Taylor then grabbed the woman, took down his pants and attempted to sexually assault her. She escaped and immediately notified the police. Taylor was stopped by Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) officers nearby a short while later, where they arrested him.
After his arrest, Taylor told detectives from MPD’s Sexual Assault Unit that he had intended to rape the victim. Taylor told the detective that he had done something similar in Prince George’s County, Maryland, when he was 18-years-old, and that he had served time in Maryland for that other incident.
In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Liu commended the work of the Metropolitan Police Department, including MPD’s Sexual Assault Unit. She also acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialist Brenda C. Williams and Victim/Witness Assistance Unit Supervisor Dr. Lorraine Chase. Finally, U.S. Attorney Liu commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorney Peter V. Taylor, who investigated and prosecuted this case.
