DA Williams, DA’s Office Team Secure Guilty As Charged Second Degree Murder Conviction Stemming From 2017 Homicide

NEW ORLEANS – Yesterday, District Attorney Jason Williams, along with Assistant District Attorneys (ADA) Joe Zanetti and Corbin Bates, secured the guilty as charged conviction of Damond Scott for Second Degree Murder, Attempted Second Degree Murder, and Obstruction of Justice. By unanimous jury verdict, Scott was found guilty for violent crimes committed in the St. Roch neighborhood in January 2017.

“Being able to secure justice for the senseless violence ​seen in this case is the exact reason that we at the DA’s Office do the work that we do, and it’s a prime example of our laser focus on ​the violent crime taking place in our community. As prosecutors, we are working every single day to ensure that those who commit violent offenses in our neighborhoods are held accountable for their actions. And we will continue to do everything in our power to increase safety and deliver justice,” said District Attorney Williams. “I would like to thank ADA Joe Zanetti, ADA Corbin Bates, and Victim/Witness Advocate Vickie Landry for their hard work on this case, and the privilege of trying it alongside them. Additionally, I would like to thank NOPD Detectives Nicholas Williams and Ryan Aucoin for their thorough investigative work and for providing our office with the evidence needed to secure a conviction. As with any murder in this city, my thoughts and prayers are with the families of the victims of this unnecessary crime. We are happy to have done our part to bring some ​measure of resolve and healing to them.”

According to the NOPD reports, Scott fired ​multiple shots into a vehicle, murdering one of the passengers and injuring another. Scott was ​arrested and charged in March 2017.

The defendant will be sentenced on September 22, 2022, and is facing life in prison.

This conviction complements the success of DA Williams and OPDA prosecutors to secure convictions ​via jury trial since the resumption of jury trials in March. When cases come to OPDA with sufficient evidence, the District Attorney’s Office has vigorously fought for victims of violent crimes. Guilty jury trial verdicts secured since March include:

• DA Williams, along with OPDA Trials Division Chief Matthew Derbes, secured the conviction of Samuel Hunter for the Second Degree Murder of Anthony Bridges in the 1700 block of Monroe Street on Christmas Day 2020.
• ADAs Liz Strauss and Adele Krieger secured the conviction of Demeccio Caston for the Second Degree Murder of Patrick Lamar in New Orleans East in August 2019
• ADAs Samantha Stagias and Carmen Gealogo secured the conviction of Trae Williams for the manslaughter of his uncle Eddie Salvant III in Algiers in April 2014.
• Chief Derbes and ADA Joe Zanetti secured the conviction of Harrison Bethley for the murder of his cousin, Darnell Thomas, in the 1800 block of Treasure Street in February 2020.
• ADAs Corbin Bates and Carmen Gealogo secured the conviction of Jhustyn Garrett for Domestic Abuse stemming from an incident that took place in the 5700 block of Saint Anthony Street.
• DA Williams, along with OPDA Sexual Assault Kit Initiative (SAKI) Unit Chief Mary Glass and ADA Naomi Jones, secured the conviction of William McDonough for the rape of a victim in the 900 block of Poeyfarre Street in September 2016.
• ADA/Screening Division Chief Andre Gaudin, Jr. and First Asst. Ned McGowan secured the conviction of Christopher Alexander for the murder of Idrick Brister in New Orleans East in 2018.
• ADAs Simone Levine and Brad Scott secured the conviction of Gerald “Frog” West for the murder of Marion Brit Hutson, Jr. in New Orleans East in February 2018.
• SAKI Chief Mary Glass and ADA Naomi Jones secured the cold case conviction of defendant Roland Butler for kidnapping, robbery, and sexual assault in the 1100 block of Toledano Street in 1996.
• ADA Samantha Stagias secured the conviction of defendant Tremaine Williams for Aggravated Battery and Felon with a Firearm in New Orleans East in September 2020.
• DA Williams, along with ADAs Christian Hebert-Pryor and Screening Chief Andre Gaudin, Jr., secured the conviction of Garrett Ward for the killing of 60-year-old Arnold Jackson in the 2000 block of Saint Charles Avenue in January 2018.
• Deputy Chief of Trials Lilian Hangartner and ADA Samantha Stagias secured the unanimous conviction of Joshua Riley for a Third Degree Rape that took place in the French Quarter in July 2019.
• ADAs Alex Calenda and Katherine Messina secured the conviction of defendant Michael Robinson for the Second Degree Murders of Leroy Benn, Jr., Gavonte Lampkin, and Shantrell Parker that took place in the in the 5000 block of Tullis Street in Gentilly in July 2018.
• ADAs Tori Guidry and Susan Kutcher secured the conviction of Damien Jenkins for Aggravated Assault with a Firearm and Felon in Possession of a Firearm, which took place in the 3600 block of General De Gaulle Drive in Algiers in March 2020.
• Deputy Chief of Trials Lilian Hangartner and ADA Penny Kissinger secured the conviction of defendant Shonnon Esteen for the rape of two minors in Orleans Parish between 2006 to 2010.
• ADAs Christian Hebert-Pryor and William Dieters secured a unanimous guilty as charged verdict of defendant Craig Curley, Sr. for sexual abuse of a minor.

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