District Man Pleads Guilty in Domestic Violence Homicide

WASHINGTON - Desmond Thurston, 48, of Washington, D.C., pleaded guilty yesterday to murdering his ex-romantic partner in her home on October 1, 2023, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.

Thurston plead guilty to one count of second-degree murder while armed in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia on February 4, 2026. Sentencing is scheduled for June 5, 2026, before the Honorable Judge Rainey Brandt.

According to the government's evidence, on September 28, 2023, Patricia Johnson called 911 to report that Thurston had threatened her. The next day, Johnson obtained a Temporary Protection Order ("TPO") against Thurston. On September 30, 2023, Metropolitan Police Department officers responded twice to Ms. Johnson's residence, which she had shared with Thurston for years, to advise Thurston that they could escort him in to get needed items, but that he was not allowed in the residence.

Despite the TPO, and the warning from MPD, Thurston returned to Johnson's home around 3:00 a.m. on October 1, 2023, and broke in, snapping a chain lock off the wall. Thurston proceeded up the stairs of the home to where Johnson and a minor family member had been sleeping in different bedrooms. After a brief exchange of words in the hallway, Thurston shot Johnson once through her left wrist and neck, causing her to fall to the ground. Thurston then shot Johnson a second time, in the chest, while she was on the ground. After going through Johnson's devices, Thurston eventually left the home, allowing the minor family member witness to call 911. A few hours later, after disposing of the gun, Thurston turned himself into an MPD officer, advising that he assumed they were looking for him for a murder. He was placed under arrest and has remained in custody ever since.

Joining in the announcement was Interim Chief Jeffery Carroll of the Metropolitan Police Department.

The Metropolitan Police Department's Homicide Branch investigated the case.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Zach Horton and Wes Faulkner Jr. are prosecuting the case.

2023CF1007099