U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro announced Friday that two 17-year-olds have been charged with first-degree murder in the June slaying of a congressional intern in Washington, D.C.
Jalen Lucas and Kelvin Thomas Jr. were arrested and will be tried as adults for the killing of 21-year-old Eric Tarpinian-Jachym, a University of Massachusetts Amherst student interning for Rep. Ron Estes (R-KS). A third suspect remains at large.
Drive-By Shooting
Tarpinian-Jachy
On June 30, the three gunmen allegedly fired 79 rounds from two rifles and a 9mm handgun at a rival riding a bicycle near the Washington Convention Center.
Tarpinian-Jachym, who was caught in the crossfire, died the next day.
The suspects fled in a stolen car, officials said.
Pirro Demands Accountability
“Eric didn’t deserve to be gunned down, and the system failed him,” Pirro said. She criticized D.C. laws that steer juvenile offenders into family court.
“The DC Council thinks these kids need to be protected. They don’t need to be protected — we need to be protected. They’re not kids, they’re criminals,” she said.
Pirro argued that Congress should repeal local laws that limit the U.S. Attorney’s authority to prosecute violent juveniles in adult court.
Pirro emphasized that juvenile leniency in D.C. has fueled repeat violence. She cited a recent case where a 19-year-old shooter received only probation under the city’s Youth Rehabilitation Act.
“These young punks who are on the street with guns, shooting at each other, killing innocent people — they need to be brought into my system and not family court,” she said.
Mayor Supports Prosecution
D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser, a Democrat, appeared with Pirro and agreed the teens should face adult charges.
“Cold-blooded murder qualifies as a crime that should have a 17-year-old considered as an adult,” she said.
Bowser recently signaled support for President Trump’s extended federal law enforcement surge in the city, even as other Democrats opposed it.
Federal Crime Crackdown
Trump ordered hundreds of federal agents and National Guard troops into D.C. this summer after Tarpinian-Jachym’s killing and the assault of a former staffer days later.
The crackdown has led to nearly 200 illegal gun seizures, according to the White House.
The president also threatened to demolish “slums” tied to violent crime, though no plan has been detailed.
