By
Chelsea Campbell
, Arianna Camacho – July 21, 2025


Court
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Daily Stories
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Non-Fatal Shooting
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Suspects
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DC Superior Court Judge Andrea Hertzfeld sentenced a defendant to 18 months of incarceration and three years of supervised release on July 16.

Terry McNeal, 44, was originally charged with assault with a dangerous weapon and possession  of a firearm during a crime of violence for his involvement in a non-fatal shooting on Feb. 2, 2024, on the 2400 block of H Street, SE. 

McNeal accepted a deal extended by the prosecution and pleaded guilty to assault with a dangerous weapon and carrying a pistol without a license. In exchange, the prosecution agreed to dismiss all other charges in the case. 

According to court documents, McNeal followed the victim as he was driving and fired several shots into the air.

The prosecution recommended a sentence at the bottom of the sentencing guidelines. They acknowledged that McNeal had not had any interactions with the criminal justice system for 20 years, was a productive member of the community and accepted full responsibility for the crimes. However, they also stated that the crime was very serious and McNeal had been involved in a separate incident in Prince George’s County connected to the victim’s family in the shooting case. 

McNeal’s attorney, Matthew Davies, told Judge Hertzfeld that McNeal and the victim had managed to reconcile with the support of their community, and the victim was not interested in pressing charges. The case went forward due to the threat prosecutors felt McNeal posed to the community. 

Davies requested that McNeal receive a split sentence, which would require McNeal to serve only a part of his sentence in prison and the remainder on probation. Davies said McNeal has extensive family support to help integrate him back into the community, pointing to his family members in the courtroom. Davies argued that McNeal would abide by his release conditions and had employment arrangeed upon release. 

“This is not a dangerous person. This is not who he is,” Davies said about McNeal. “He is sitting here full of regret.” 

“I regret everything I’m going through,” McNeal told the court. “I let my family and my job down. You don’t have to worry about this happening again.”

“You put the entire community at risk over one guy,” Judge Hertzfeld said to McNeal. She told him that he had the potential to be a productive member of the community, but she was extremely concerned about his judgement and decision-making ability. 

Judge Hertzfeld sentenced McNeal to 18 months of incarceration with three years of supervised release for assault with a dangerous weapon, and six months of incarceration with three years of supervised release for carrying a pistol without a license. Both sentences are to run concurrently. She ordered that McNeal register as a gun offender following release and pay two hundred dollars to the Victims of Violent Crime Fund (VVCF.)

No further hearings were set in this case.