WASHINGTON - Anthony Wade, 31 of Washington, D.C., and his uncle, Antwain Bailey, 47 of Temple Hills, Md., have pled guilty to charges stemming from their roles in the killing of a man in Southeast Washington, U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips announced today.
Both men entered their guilty pleas on Jan. 12, 2017, in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. Wade pled guilty to second-degree murder while armed, and Bailey pled guilty to voluntary manslaughter while armed. The guilty pleas, which are contingent upon the Court’s approval, call for Wade to be sentenced to between 15 and 24 years in prison and for Bailey to be sentenced to a 13-year-prison term. The Honorable Milton C. Lee set a hearing for May 19, 2017 to determine whether the pleas and sentences will be accepted.
According to the government’s evidence, in the late afternoon of March 9, 2016, Bailey had a verbal altercation with the victim, Aubrey Dansbury, in an apartment in the 800 block of Chesapeake Street SE. During the argument, Wade called his uncle, Bailey, and provided Bailey with his location. Wade then walked outside and Mr. Dansbury followed. Once outside, the two men began to fist fight. People from the neighborhood tried unsuccessfully to break up the fight.
As the fight continued, Bailey drove onto the block in a black Lexus sedan. Bailey parked the car and got out, and Wade ran over to him. When Mr. Dansbury and Wade began to fight again, Bailey intervened and walked Wade to the front of the car. Bailey then handed Wade a gun. Wade turned and began shooting at Mr. Dansbury, who was standing at the back of the Lexus. Wade fired the gun at least two times, but neither shot hit Mr. Dansbury. The gun jammed. Wade handed the gun to Bailey, who unjammed the weapon and handed it back. Wade then repeatedly fired the gun as he followed Mr. Dansbury around the car. Mr. Dansbury got inside of the back seat of the sedan to seek cover. Wade then shot Mr. Dansbury multiple times. Mr. Dansbury fell out of the car onto the sidewalk. Bailey got into the driver’s seat and Wade got into the back seat and the car pulled off. Mr. Dansbury, 27, died from the gunshot wounds on March 17, 2016.
In announcing the pleas, U.S. Attorney Phillips commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police department (MPD). He also acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office including Victim/Witness Advocate Diana Lim and Paralegal Specialist Lashone Samuels. Finally, he commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Adrienne Dedjinou, Matthew Massey and Allessandra Stewart, who investigated and prosecuted the case.