District resident Startwaune Anderson, 19, was sentenced Tuesday to five years in prison for hitting and critically injuring a transgender woman while driving a stolen car under the influence of P, U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu announced.
According to a document filed when his pleas was made, in the early hours of July 5, 2017 Anderson found car keys to a 2014 Ford Focus hatchback in the 1200 block of Morse Street NE. He found the vehicle that matched the keys and drove off without the owner’s permission.
At approximately 3:15 a.m. on July 5th, Anderson drove across the intersection of Fourth and K Streets NE, running over the woman.
Anderson fled the scene without checking on the well-being of the person he had struck. A couple of hours later, he was seen crashing into the fence at Gallaudet University. A witness reported seeing him exit the vehicle with a bottle of vodka in hand as he fled the scene.
On July 6, 2017, Anderson was interviewed by the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) and itted to having been under the influence of P and Xanax. He also itted having taken and driven the Ford Focus without the owner’s permission.
The victim suffered critical injuries, including bleeding on the brain, multiple rib fractures, a lacerated spleen, and a punctured lung. She was sedated and on a respirator for a couple of weeks and still must undergo outpatient rehabilitation treatment.
Anderson pled guilty in November 2017, in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, to aggravated assault while armed. The plea agreement, which was contingent upon the Court’s approval, called for an agreed-upon sentence of five to six years in prison. The Honorable Anthony Epstein accepted the plea and sentenced the defendant accordingly.
Following his prison term, Anderson will be placed on five years of supervised release.
