DC teen gets 4-month sentence for carjacking despite 7 years sought
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A Washington, D.C., teenager will be sentenced to less than four months in prison for carjacking in the U.S. capital, even though federal prosecutors are seeking a seven-year sentence.
Mark Edwards, 18, was sentenced in the High Court on Friday after pleading guilty to one count of carjacking for the incident on May 28. U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro said he and his 14-year-old accomplice stole a double-parked car after hinting to the driver that they were armed.
Edwards and the 14-year-old boy were later captured in Maryland following a police pursuit.
Judge Judith Pipe, appointed by former President Joe Biden, sentenced Edwards to 84 months in prison, suspended time served and one year of supervised release. The court imposed the sentence under the Youth Rehabilitation Act, which allows sentences below mandatory minimum sentences, despite the government’s objection.
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A DC Metropolitan Police vehicle drives up to 14th St. in Washington, DC, on August 14, 2025. Seen at the intersection of NW and U St. (Alex Wroblewski/AFP via Getty Images)
Prosecutors had requested a seven-year prison sentence followed by three years of supervised release.
Edwards had been in custody since August 6 and spent approximately 108 days in jail. If he successfully completes parole, he will not have to serve the remainder of the suspended sentence, prosecutors said.
Edwards took a plea deal days earlier after also being charged with attempted carjacking. In that incident, Edwards and another suspect approached a double-parked vehicle, demanded the driver’s keys and stole his cellphone, prosecutors said. According to the Department of Justice, the driver managed to get into his car and flee the scene.
Judge Judith Pipe testifies at a hearing before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee on November 21, 2025, in Washington, DC. (Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs)
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Pirro and D.C. Police Chief Pamela Smith praised the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) officers who investigated both incidents.
Teen carjackings remain a concern in the nation’s capital, but overall numbers are falling.
There have been 238 car thefts and 135 arrests so far this year. MPD data.
U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro speaks at a news conference about the crime. (via Getty Images for Eric Lee/Washington Post)
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More than half of those arrested, 53 percent, were children.
According to the data, car theft cases are down nearly 49% year-to-date compared to the same period in 2024.
