Elderly Man Faces Legal Consequences Following Self-Inflicted Gunshot Wound
Debarylife – An 80-year-old defendant in a non-fatal shooting case was sentenced to 18 months in prison and three years of supervised release by DC Superior Court Judge Andrea Hertzfeld on March 26.
For his part in the shooting that took place on October 3, 2019, in the 700 block of H Street, NE, Leroy B. Headspeth, 80, has been charged with assault with a dangerous weapon, possession of a firearm during a crime of violence, and unlawful possession of a firearm by a prior convict, among other offenses. Headspeth hurt himself in the process.
Headspeth agreed to a plea deal made by the prosecution, which included admitting to illegally possessing a firearm by a convicted felon and having all other felony counts dropped.
Additionally, the misdemeanor case against Headspeth was dismissed by the prosecution.
Officials from the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) discovered Headspeth wounded in an alley, with a handgun beside him, and a bullet in his upper left leg, according to court records. He afterward stated that, before getting hurt, he met a third party and purchased the rifle from them.
Following an incident with the person who reportedly sold him the revolver, Headspeth is seen firing a pistol close to a park bench in surveillance footage. Without hurting anyone else, Headspeth shot himself in the leg.
Headspeth used a walker and entered the courtroom ponderously and slowly at his sentencing. Invoking the need for him to accept accountability for his acts, the prosecution requested a maximum sentence of eighteen months in jail followed by three years of supervised release.
In his plea, Headspeth’s defense lawyer, Theodore Shaw, emphasized his client’s advanced age and continued fight with cancer. Shaw said that his client has been in and out of Howard Hospital for cancer treatment. Shaw requested that the court either hold the client in the DC jail locally or award probation so that the client may get medical care readily.
Shaw said that before this offense, Headspeth had little interaction with the criminal court system.
Headspeth informed the judge that he was prepared to receive his sentence and thanked her for her time.
Ultimately, Judge Hertzfeld thought the plea agreement of 18 months in jail followed by three years of supervised release was suitable. She’ll suggest that he remain incarcerated in Washington, DC.
Judge Hertzfeld also mandated that Headspeth pay $100 to the Victim Crimes Fund and register as a gun offender.
There were no other dates announced.