FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Friday, June 3, 2022

Three Men Sentenced to Prison Terms for July 4, 2020 Slaying of 11-Year-Old Boy

Child Struck by Gunfire While Walking to His Apartment

WASHINGTON –Three men, all from Washington, D.C., were sentenced today to prison terms for their roles in the fatal shooting of 11-year-old Davon McNeal on July 4, 2020, in Southeast Washington, announced U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves and Robert J. Contee III, Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).

All three defendants pleaded guilty in February 2022, in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, to voluntary manslaughter while armed. They include Carlo General, 21, Marcel Gordon, 27, and Christen Wingfield, 24. General’s plea called for an agreed-upon sentence of 13 to 16 years in prison. Gordon’s called for 10 years, and Wingfield’s called for 9 ½-years.

The Honorable Rainey R. Brandt accepted the pleas and sentenced the defendants accordingly. General was sentenced to 16 years, Gordon to 10 years, and Wingfield to 9 ½ years. Following their prison terms, they will be placed on five years of supervised release.

The sentences are consistent with the Court’s voluntary sentencing guidelines.

A fourth defendant, Daryle Bond, 20, also from Washington, D.C., is to be sentenced on Aug. 4, 2022. Bond also pleaded guilty in February 2022 to voluntary manslaughter while armed, and his plea agreement calls for an agreed-upon term of 7 ½-to-9 ½- years in prison.

According to the government’s evidence, on July 4, 2020, at approximately 9:15 p.m., General, Gordon, Wingfield, and Bond were congregating at a barbeque near the cul-de-sac in front of an apartment building located in the 1400 block of Cedar Street SE. Cedar Street is a long road that ends in a cul-de-sac. The entrance of the 1400 block of Cedar Street intersects diagonally with a street that is known as the “alley.”

Near the entrance of the 1400 block of Cedar Street, Davon McNeal – 11 years old – was exiting a vehicle and walking towards a basement apartment in the Frederick Douglass Garden Apartment Complex. At a certain point, General, armed with a firearm with a laser sight, started running towards the entrance of the 1400 block of Cedar Street and fired his weapon towards the alley. Surveillance footage shows Davon running towards the basement apartment and falling after General fired his weapon.

Approximately six seconds later, Gordon, while running behind General, fired his weapon in the same direction. Bond, also armed with a firearm, ran towards the entrance of the 1400 block on a sidewalk on the side of the apartment building, along with Wingfield, who was armed with a firearm as well and running on the road.

All four defendants gathered in front of the apartment building and looked down the alley. The group subsequently ran in the direction of a playground with guns drawn. Bond, General and Gordon all fired their firearms as they were running away.

An autopsy concluded that Davon’s death was caused by a gunshot wound to the head.

General was arrested on July 30, 2020. Bond was arrested on July 10, 2020. Wingfield was arrested on July 11, 2020. Gordon was arrested on Sept. 1, 2020. All have been in custody since their arrests.

In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Graves and Chief Contee commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Criminal Investigations Division Homicide Branch of the Metropolitan Police Department. They acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialist Lashone Samuels, former Victim/ Witness Specialist Marcia Rinker, Victim/ Witness Specialist Latrice Washington-Williams, and Investigative Analyst Zachary McMenamin.

Finally, they commended the efforts of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Shehzad Akhtar, Stephen Rickard, and Jack Korba, who investigated and prosecuted the case, and former Assistant U.S. Attorney Maryam Adeyola, who provided valuable assistance.