Sentencing Information
•
Carjacking convictions represented approximately 0.5% of all original adult felony counts sentenced between 2015 and 2024 in D.C. Superior Court.
•
Unarmed Carjacking convictions represented 69% of all adult Carjacking counts sentenced between 2015 and 2024.

•
96% of all adult Carjacking convictions resulted in a Guidelines Compliant Prison (including Long Split and Life) sentence.
➢
Unarmed Carjacking has a 7-year mandatory minimum sentence requirement, while Armed Carjacking has a 15-year mandatory minimum sentence requirement. Attempted Unarmed Carjacking does not have a mandatory minimum.
•
Average Prison sentence imposed for each type of Carjacking conviction:
➢
Armed Carjacking: 15 years (177 months)
➢
Unarmed Carjacking: 7 years (87 months)
➢
Attempted Unarmed Carjacking: 1.4 years (17 months)
•
83% of all adult Carjacking convictions were resolved via a plea agreement, and 17% were the result of a jury trial.

Homicide Offenses: 2015 – 2024

Sentencing Information
•
Homicide convictions represented approximately 3.3% of all original adult felony counts sentenced between 2015 and 2024 in D.C. Superior Court.
•
Voluntary Manslaughter convictions represented 47% of all adult Homicide counts sentenced between 2015 and 2024.

•
98% of all adult Homicide convictions resulted in a Guidelines Compliant Prison (including Long Split and Life) sentence.
•
Average Prison sentence imposed for each type of Homicide conviction:
➢
Murder I: 36 years (430 months)
➢
Murder II: 18 years (212 months)
➢
Voluntary Manslaughter: 10 years (120 months)
➢
Involuntary Manslaughter: 5 years (61 months)
**10 Homicide counts received Life sentences and are not included in the average sentence imposed calculations.

A Comparison of Adult Felony Sentencing Trends Before and After the COVID-19 Pandemic

Using data provided by the D.C. Superior Court, the Commission has analyzed adult felony sentences imposed in three distinct time periods: pre-COVID (2017-2019), COVID (2020-2021) and post-COVID (2022-2024), to identify any shifts or emerging trends in sentencing practices that followed the COVID-19 pandemic.
In respect to each of the defined time periods, this Issue Paper will explore :
1.
The number of counts, cases, and individuals sentenced
2.
The types of offenses that were convicted and sentenced
3.
The types of sentences that were imposed
4.
Changes in sentencing trends among different regions of the Sentencing Grid
5.
Demographic trends