By Zoe Tillman,From Legal Times

In deal with prosecutors, Jamyra Gallmon pleads to second-degree murder in death of DLA Piper associate David Messerschmitt.

The woman charged with killing Washington lawyer David Messerschmitt during a planned robbery at a downtown hotel in February pleaded guilty Thursday in District of Columbia Superior Court.

Jamyra Gallmon, who was arrested in April, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder while armed. Prosecutors agreed to reduce the charge from first-degree murder and will seek a sentence between 18 and 25 years in prison. The maximum penalty for second-degree murder is 40 years.

A second woman arrested, Dominique Johnson, pleaded guilty to a conspiracy charge, which carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison. Johnson, who was Gallmon’s girlfriend, according to prosecutors, admitted helping Gallmon plan the robbery. Sentencing for both women is scheduled for Aug. 14. Johnson will remain free until she is sentenced. Gallmon will remain in custody.

(Read the plea documents for Jamyra Gallmon and Dominique Johnson.)

“Our hope is that justice is served in this case for all the families whose lives have been changed,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Shana Fulton said after Thursday’s hearing. “Especially for the family of David Messerschmitt, who will never get him back.”

Acting U.S. Attorney Vincent Cohen Jr. said in a statement that, “Our hearts go out to everyone who knew and loved David Messerschmitt.” He added:

It is outrageous that a young man with such a promising future was murdered over a cell phone and a Metro card. We can only hope that the rapid apprehension and conviction of those responsible for his death will help his loved ones find some sense of peace.

Gallmon’s lawyer, Matthew Davies of the Public Defender Service, declined to comment.

Criminal defense attorney Mark Rollins of Washington’s Rollins & Chan, who is not involved in the Messerschmitt case, said that getting the charge reduced from first-degree to second-degree murder was a “good deal” for Gallmon.

“I would imagine that [Gallmon’s lawyer] Matthew Davies presented an argument that says she didn’t go there to murder that guy, and something happened in that room that caused her to flip and lose control of herself,” Rollins said.

Messerschmitt, 30, an associate at DLA Piper, was fatally stabbed in a room at The Donovan Hotel in downtown Washington in February. He was stabbed numerous times, including in the back, police said.

Messerschmitt’s widow, Kim Vuong, who was in court Thursday, grew emotional as Fulton described Messerschmitt’s injuries. Vuong declined to comment immediately after the hearing. A family spokesman also declined to comment.

According to charging documents, Gallmon, pretending to be a man, responded to an ad Messerschmitt posted on Craigslist in February seeking a sexual encounter, police said. The two agreed to meet in Room 400 of the Donovan Hotel. Gallmon allegedly told police she intended to rob Messerschmitt. Gallmon claimed Messerschmitt grabbed her arm at one point, triggering a memory of a prior assault, according to her statements to police. Police said she took out a knife and stabbed him.

During Thursday’s hearing, Gallmon answered, “Yes,” when Judge J. Michael Ryan asked if she used force that exceeded what was necessary to defend herself.

Police Chief Cathy Lanier said in a statement on Thursday that Gallmon and Johnson “preyed upon David Messerschmitt for his property and they are being held accountable. The guilty pleas are just one step closer for the Messerschmitt family to attempt to gain closure in this senseless crime.”

Prosecutors said in a letter filed with the court this week that they had given DNA test results to the defense lawyers. The letter did not include details of the results. After Gallmon was arrested, police took a swab of saliva from her cheek to test for a DNA match to blood found at the Donovan Hotel. According to the plea documents released on Thursday, those tests revealed a match.

Gallmon stole $40 in cash and a subway card loaded with $172 from Messerschmitt after the stabbing, according to police documents. Police said Gallmon then met up with Johnson, the 19-year-old woman she lived with at the time.

According to charging documents, Gallmon told Johnson on the bus ride home from the hotel that things “went bad.”

Police arrested Gallmon on April 1. She pleaded not guilty during her first court appearance. Her lawyer described the killing as a case of “imperfect self-defense.” Johnson was arrested on April 8.

Before Gallmon was arrested, police for weeks had asked the public to help identify a person—later identified as Gallmon—whose image was captured on hotel security cameras the night Messerschmitt was killed. One week before Gallmon was arrested, Messerschmitt’s widow Kim Vuong made an emotional plea for assistance with the investigation.

“I am here because I need people to know about David. My husband was the gentlest and kindest-hearted person I knew,” Vuong said during the March 25 press conference. “He worked hard at everything. He was a brilliant lawyer who people trusted. He was deeply dedicated to his family and spent a great deal of his time traveling to be with them.”

Messerschmitt moved to Washington in 2012, transferring from the Chicago office of Mayer Brown, where he worked at the time. He joined DLA Piper in April 2014. He was a member of the firm’s technology and sourcing practice.

D.C. police charged Jamyra Gallmon, seen here in a hotel surveillance video the authorities provided to the media, in the stabbing death of DLA Piper associate David Messerschmitt.

Photo: Diego M. Radzinschi/NLJ

For more on this story go to: http://www.nationallawjournal.com/legaltimes/id=1202727629868/Woman-Charged-in-Murder-of-DC-Lawyer-Pleads-Guilty-#ixzz3bXwCSw6t

 

See iNews Cayman related story with links published April 6 2015 “Police: DLA lawyer killed after Craigslist connection” at: http://www.ieyenews.com/wordpress/police-dla-lawyer-killed-after-craigslist-connection/