D.C. judge releases teen convicted in shooting that wounded boy

A 19-year-old who authorities say fired more than 20 shots into a Washington, D.C., neighborhood, injuring a boy who was playing basketball, has been released on probation. The decision drew sharp criticism from the White House, which called the city’s sentencing approach dangerously lenient.

Prosecutors had sought a five-year prison term for Darius Drew. Instead, Superior Court Judge Jennifer Di Toro suspended a two-year sentence and ordered him to serve 18 months of supervised probation under the Youth Rehabilitation Act. Federal prosecutors opposed both the sentence and Drew’s release.

White House spokeswoman Lauren Bis said the case showed how an adult could face little punishment for a serious crime. She also said President Trump’s Safe and Beautiful Task Force had helped reduce violent crime in the capital.

Drew pleaded guilty on August 10 to aggravated assault and carrying a pistol without a license. He was released Friday after spending nearly six months in custody following his arrest on May 22.

According to prosecutors, the shooting began on May 11 at two locations in a Northwest Washington neighborhood. Drew rode a Lime bike into an alley, where surveillance footage captured him firing at a parked car. A gunshot detection system recorded 10 shots.

Seconds later, prosecutors said, Drew fired toward a nearby house. A boy playing basketball at a recreation center was hit in the leg. Investigators said more than 20 rounds were fired in total.

Authorities later found two firearms, ammunition and what they described as large quantities of suspected narcotics and marijuana at Drew’s home.

The sentence has renewed scrutiny of the Youth Rehabilitation Act. In a letter to the D.C. Council dated August 6, 2025, U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro urged lawmakers to revise the law, pointing to a separate case involving a 19-year-old who received probation after shooting someone in the chest aboard a Metrobus.

The law, expanded by the D.C. Council in 2018, can allow eligible people who committed crimes before age 25 to receive sentences below otherwise applicable mandatory minimums. In some cases, convictions may later be set aside. Murder and the most serious sexual abuse offenses are not covered.

In the separate case, Pirro wrote, the young man pleaded guilty to two offenses carrying five-year mandatory minimums but received probation after spending four months in jail awaiting trial.

Pirro has argued that the law should better balance rehabilitation with accountability. Her office said 96% of defendants under 25 who received felony sentences in D.C. Superior Court from 2022 to 2024 were eligible for sentencing under the act.

The White House said the Safe and Beautiful Task Force has made more than 19,000 arrests, including arrests involving people accused of murder, sexual offenses, drug trafficking and other violent crimes.

The D.C. Council and Judge Di Toro’s office were contacted for comment.