Friday, January 26, 2024

    WASHINGTON – Michael Caldwell, 29, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced to 12 years of incarceration today for the June 4, 2023, stabbing of a man on the sidewalk in Southeast Washington D.C., announced U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves and Pamela A. Smith, Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).

            Caldwell pled guilty to voluntary manslaughter while armed on August 14, 2023, in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. Today, the Honorable Maribeth Raffinan sentenced Caldwell to 144 months in prison followed by five years of supervised release.

            According to the government’s evidence, on June 4, 2023, Caldwell was in the 4300 block of Halley Terrace SE, around 11:30 p.m. The victim, Damien Thompson, 44, and Caldwell got into a verbal dispute on the street. Mr. Thompson threw a bottle at Caldwell, and the two continued to argue. At one point, Mr. Thompson grabbed a plastic chair to throw at Caldwell, but before he could do so, Caldwell lunged at Mr. Thompson, and stabbed him in the face. Mr. Thompson fell to the ground unconscious. Caldwell then proceeded to stab Mr. Thompson eight more times in the chest as he laid helpless and defenseless on the ground. Mr. Thompson died from his injuries a short time later.

In announcing today’s sentence, U.S. Attorney Graves and Chief Smith commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department.  They also acknowledged those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office including Assistant U.S. Attorney Joshua Hall, who prosecuted the case, with valuable assistance by Paralegal Specialist Lisa Minott and Victim Witness Program Specialist Karina Hernandez.