A Portland rap artist was sentenced Friday to four years in prison for possessing a gun as a felon after authorities tied a pistol found in his girlfriend’s apartment to the one he posed with in music videos.
Desmond Boris Washington, 35, was convicted in November after a federal jury trial.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Parakram Singh urged a sentence of five years and 10 months for Washington’s third gun-related offense.
His defense lawyer, Thomas Freedman, urged a sentence of time served, which was 21 months and 11 days.
Freedman argued that Washington had the gun “in the creation of art” and rap music videos.
“Mr. Washington was not alleged to have engaged in any other crime,” Freedman said. “It would just be a shame to send him to prison for 50 more months because he created rap music videos.”
The case stems from Washington’s arrest in October 2018.
Investigators searched his girlfriend’s apartment with a warrant in an unrelated case and found a Taurus model .45-caliber gun in the master bedroom’s dresser drawer, beside Washington’s personal belongings, including a gold dental grill, several gold necklaces and an “i5da.p” pendant, his rap music moniker, according to court records.
The pistol, with a black handle and silver slide, was reported stolen from a storage locker in Tualatin in March or April 2017 and was one of the guns that prosecutors said Washington was holding in a photo posted on Facebook and in several of his YouTube videos called, “This Life, “Hole Thang” and “On Yo (Expletive),” prosecutors said.
Prosecutors showed this Facebook photo of Desmond Washington, arguing that the pistol in Washington's right hand was the one seized from the bedroom dresser drawer in the apartment of Washington's girlfriend.
A firearms expert compared the gun confiscated to the pistol in Washington’s photos and videos and testified that the gun in the dresser had all the same features and characteristics of the gun captured in the images posted on social media. The expert pointed out, for example, how the rear sight of the handgun is offset to the right, not centered.
Washington’s lawyer had argued at trial that prosecutors couldn’t conclude that the gun in Washington’s videos was the same and not a prop gun or fake gun.
Washington has prior convictions for delivery of cocaine, unlawful use of a firearm, attempt to elude police, felon in possession of a firearm and possession of a controlled substance.
His lawyer said Washington is a father of six and now works part time as a construction flagger and as a delivery driver for DoorDash. He has been out of custody on supervision since July.
“I’m sorry,” Washington told U.S. District Judge Marco A. Hernandez after thanking his family and friends who came to court to support him. “I’m not a bad person. People do make mistakes and you learn from them.”
The judge asked Washington to describe what those mistakes were.
“Not following the law or obeying the law,” Washington said.
“What was the bad decision?” the judge asked.
“To possess a firearm while making videos,” Washington replied.
Hernandez corrected him: “We’re not punishing you for doing art. We’re punishing you for having a firearm,” which is against the law because he’s a convicted felon.
“You were convicted because you had a gun, not because you were making videos. The video was just proof that it was yours,” Hernandez said.
Washington’s last conviction was in 2014, but only a few months lapsed between when he completed his post-prison supervision for his last offense and this one, Hernandez e noted. Other guns and drugs were present when Washington was arrested, the judge said.
Hernandez said he was prepared to issue a significant sentence but was moved by the substantial family and community support for Washington.
The judge said he arrived at a four-year prison term because he felt the sentencing guidelines for the offense were too harsh but that a time-served sentence would be too lenient.
-- Maxine Bernstein
Email mbernstein@oregonian.com; 503-221-8212
Follow on Twitter @maxoregonian
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Portland rap artist, a convicted felon who posed with gun in music video, sentenced to four years in prison - OregonLive
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