District Man Sentenced to 82 Months for Offensively Touching 14-Year Old Child

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Friday, February 17, 2023

Defendant Assaulted Girl in Laundry Room in an Apartment Building

            WASHINGTON – Eric Darrell “Butch” Smith, 52, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to 82 months in prison for sexually assaulting a girl in the laundry room of a Northwest apartment building in which they were both living, announced U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves and Robert J. Contee III, Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department.

            Smith pleaded guilty to one count of second-degree child sexual abuse on December 8, 2022, in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. The Honorable Milton Lee, Jr., who took Smith’s guilty plea, sentenced Smith today. In addition to the prison time, Smith was ordered, once released from prison, to 10 years of supervised release, and to register as a sex offender for 10 years. Judge Lee ordered that today’s sentence run consecutive to any other sentence that Smith might serve.

            At his earlier plea hearing, Smith admitted that, on the afternoon of July 16, 2022, he followed the victim into the laundry room on the floor they were both living at the time. He engaged her in conversation, told the victim how pretty she was and asked her for a hug. She complied, hoping that by doing so Smith would leave her alone.  As Smith hugged the girl, he intentionally touched her buttocks with his hand. This act was captured by the security camera located inside the laundry room.

            The victim immediately reported to her brother and her mother that the defendant had touched her inappropriately. The police were notified, arrived at the apartment building and arrested the defendant, who was still on the scene.  He has been in custody since his arrest.

            In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Graves and Chief Contee commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department. They also expressed appreciation for the work of those who handled the case at the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Victim/Witness Advocate Lezlie Richardson; paralegal Garcia Clarke; former paralegal Brenda Williams; and Assistant U.S. Attorney Peter V. Taylor, who prosecuted the matter.