WASHINGTON — A 16-year-old girl who pled guilty to stabbing another teenager to death outside of a D.C. McDonald’s last summer was given the maximum sentencing Wednesday afternoon.
A judge told the teen, who WUSA9 has agreed not to name, that she would remain in the custody of the Department of Youth Rehabilitation Services (DYRS) until her 21st birthday.
The death of Naima Liggon, 16, made international news when police first said she was stabbed after a fight over sweet and sour sauce. Just one day before starting her junior year at Thomas Stone High School in Waldorf, Naima broke curfew and went to a D.C. house party with friends. Afterward, a group of girls went to McDonald's on U Street, where an argument started in the car over sweet and sour sauce. Three girls, including Naima, stepped out of the car and began physically fighting. Naima ended up being stabbed twice by another 16-year-old girl with a 7.5-inch knife.
Prosecutors played the video from the MPD interrogation room when detectives asked the 16-year-old if there was a "prior beef" with Naima and she replied, "No - it was about the sauce. I asked for more sauce and she had an attitude."
She told detectives she didn't think she struck Naima the first time she swung her knife 5 times toward her abdomen. But surveillance video shows as the girls retreated toward the car, the 16-year-old grabbed Naima's arm, turned her around and stabbed her in the chest.
"That's where I got her," she told detectives.
Wednesday was an emotional day in court for the friends and family of Naima as they revisited her death and gave impact statements. A 4-minute tribute video was shared and text messages, surveillance video and police interrogation were once again reviewed.
During the tribute video, Judge Andrea Hertzfeld got visibly emotional on the bench and later thanked the Liggons for sharing the video and "allowing me to learn more about your daughter," she said.
"I believe a form of justice was formed today, but not justice at all because we still don’t have her," Naima's father, Wylace Liggon, said.
The teen charged with killing Wylace Liggon's daughter cut a plea deal with the attorney general's office in December.
"This young lady committed an adult crime and was not charged as an adult," Naima's mother Joy Liggon said in reaction to the sentencing. "She could have but wasn’t. I think there needs to be more oversight on plea deals and how they’re negotiated. It would be great if the family input really did matter."
According to the American Bar Association, 98% of cases nationwide are settled in plea deals. At the time of the plea deal, a spokesperson for the attorney general’s office sent WUSA9 a statement that read:
In each case, our prosecutors evaluate which charges we have sufficient evidence to prove, the juvenile’s criminal history, as well as the certainty of outcome that can be achieved through pre-trial negotiations, amongst other factors. In each instance we make a determination based on what is in the best interest of District residents and what will improve public safety in the short and long term.
"Naima was a bright soul with so much potential for the future," Wylace Liggon said. "[She had a] great personality [and was a] good person to have on your side. She was known as a defender for those who could not defend themselves in school."
In court, the 16-year-old apologized to Naima's family saying, “I would have changed everything if I could go back to that day."
Text messages that were shared revealed that a friend asked the 16-year-old why she stabbed Naima, and she responded, "They shouldn't have jumped me, IDGAF."
The Judge said it was that callousness that informed her decision to impose the maximum sentence, even though defense attorneys presented evidence the 16-year-old is undergoing treatment at YSC and is even a youth advocate, mentoring other committed teens.
"All of us have had some trauma at some point in time but not all of us go out and kill someone," Joy Liggon said. "I’m afraid for my kid's safety in this area at this point. I don’t think there’s much faith in the judicial system and people in the world, and I think kids who get a slap on the wrist have no reason to not be doing what they’re doing in the city right now. just walk away, nothing is ever that serious especially sweet and sour sauce."
In imposing her sentence, Judge Hertzfeld said, "It's hard for me to understand that someone with no criminal history and support system commits a vicious and brutal murder to somebody, who ostensibly is a friend...and over sweet and sour sauce. It's hard to make sense of it."
The teen girl has been behind bars at the youth services center for five months and will remain there until DYRS can determine where to place her permanently.