On a summer evening in Washington, D.C., a barrage of gunfire shattered the peace and claimed the life of 54-year-old Tavonayna Povida Glenn. On June 28, 2023, in the Carver-Langston neighborhood of Northeast Washington, what should have been a pleasant night turned into one of terror. Just after 10 p.m. on the 700 block of 19th Street, NE, multiple people opened fire in a residential area.
At least 44 shots were fired, and in the midst of the chaos, Glenn was struck in the chest by the crossfire and collapsed on the sidewalk. When officers from the Metropolitan Police Department arrived at the scene, they found her with gunshot wounds. She was pronounced dead at the scene. Described as an innocent bystander, Glenn, a female of no fixed address, was caught in a senseless act of violence that transformed a familiar street into a scene of tragedy.
The investigation into the death of Tavonayna Glenn led to the identification and arrest of two suspects. The day after the shooting, one of the men, Bobby Lewis Gupton, then 25, was arrested on a charge of carrying a pistol without a license. It wasn't until December 3, 2023, that he was arrested again and charged with first-degree murder while armed in connection with Glenn's death. The second suspect, James Outland, also 25, was arrested on April 10, 2024, and faced the same charge. Court documents revealed that the suspects were allegedly among a group of four men who ran towards a crowd of people and began firing. One of the suspects was said to have fired 44 shots before fleeing in an orange Dodge Charger.
In April 2025, both Bobby Gupton and James Outland, then 26, accepted a wired plea agreement from the prosecution. They pleaded guilty to second-degree murder while armed, and in exchange, other charges, including conspiracy and possession of a firearm during a crime of violence, were dropped. The plea deal carried a maximum sentence of 40 years in prison. Following the agreement, in August 2025, Bobby Gupton was sentenced to 15 years in prison for his role in the shooting that ended the life of Tavonayna Glenn. During the sentencing, the prosecution described the event as a 'night of terror,' noting that the indiscriminate gunfire could have resulted in many more casualties. James Outland's case was still pending at that time, as he had requested to withdraw his initial plea.
