On a summer evening in Washington, D.C., the life of 27-year-old Jamal Bandy was tragically cut short. On Sunday, July 21, 2019, at approximately 7:41 p.m., police responded to the sound of gunshots in the 1300 block of Congress Street, Southeast. Arriving at the scene, officers discovered Mr. Bandy in an alley, unconscious and suffering from multiple gunshot wounds.
Emergency services transported him to a local hospital, but his injuries proved fatal, and he was pronounced dead shortly after arrival.
The investigation into the male victim's death led detectives to identify Romiel Hightower as one of two suspects involved in the shooting. The second suspect has not been identified. Five months after the incident, on December 30, 2019, the Capital Area Regional Fugitive Task Force arrested the then 29-year-old Hightower in Arlington, Virginia, on a D.C. Superior Court warrant. He was subsequently charged with First Degree Murder While Armed.
Ultimately, Romiel Hightower pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of voluntary manslaughter while armed as part of a plea agreement. In June 2022, a judge sentenced him to six-and-a-quarter years in prison. During the sentencing, members of Jamal Bandy's family had the opportunity to address the court and speak about the impact his death had on their lives.
