Shooting Near Federal Courthouse in Elizabeth City Gets Man a Decade in Federal Prison

RALEIGH, N.C. – An altercation near the Federal Courthouse in Elizabeth City landed Tavori Ditron Lindsey 10 years in federal prison after he shot at another man with a handgun and AR-15.  On October 18, 2022, Tavori Ditron Lindsey pled guilty to the charge.

According to court documents and other information presented in court, Lindsey, 36, and another man, Amos Parker, were involved in an early morning shooting on September 5, 2021, at the intersection of East Colonial Avenue and McMorrine Street in Elizabeth City, which is about a block away from the federal courthouse.  Street cameras captured the shooting and showed Parker and Lindsey engage in a verbal altercation with a man outside the Cue, a nearby establishment.  Parker can be seen on video surveillance firing a handgun at another man as he fled the area on foot.  Lindsey can also be seen shooting an AR-15 style rifle at the same man.  The Elizabeth City Police Department (ECPD) quickly responded and noticed damage to a nearby building consistent with gun shots.  Officers recovered several .223 caliber and .45 caliber shell casings in the street where the shooting occurred.  The pair were later arrested by ECPD and charged with state offenses, and they were later indicted in federal court. 

Lindsey is a convicted felon, having prior convictions for common law robbery, second degree kidnapping, and selling or delivering marijuana, as well as several misdemeanor convictions. 

Parker pled guilty to possession of ammunition by a convicted felon on October 18, 2022 was sentenced to 103 months in federal prison on January 18, 2023.

Michael Easley, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina made the announcement after sentencing by U.S. District Judge Terrence W. Boyle. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Elizabeth City Police Department investigated the case and Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert J. Dodson  prosecuted the case.

Related court documents and information can be found on the website of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina or on PACER by searching for Case No. 2:21-CR-33-BO.