D.C. Man Irv Duff Sentenced to 36 Years for Shooting Neighbor Dead After Argument Over a BBQ Grill
Irv Duff, 36, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced on November 13 in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia to 36 years in prison, to be followed by five years of supervised release, for shooting his neighbor Darnell Gibson, 26, to death after an argument over a barbecue grill.
The sentence was imposed by Judge Michael Ryan and announced by U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro. Duff was found guilty on June 23, 2026, of one count each of second-degree murder while armed, assault with a dangerous weapon, and unlawful possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, and two counts of possession of a firearm during a crime of violence.
According to the government's evidence, at about 9:30 p.m. on August 1, 2023, Duff got into a verbal dispute with his girlfriend in the stairwell of her walk-up apartment and threw a grill sitting in the hallway that belonged to Gibson. When Gibson came out of his apartment, the two argued about the grill. Duff challenged Gibson to come outside to fight, then retreated to his vehicle parked in the street and called his girlfriend to warn her there was about to be a shootout.
Gibson then walked outside, followed closely by his girlfriend. Separated by at least 60 feet, the two hurled insults at each other when Duff took out a pistol and fired 22 rounds toward Gibson and his girlfriend. The bullets narrowly missed the girlfriend. Gibson, as he tried to run away, was struck by three shots to his upper torso, all from behind, and died instantly. Duff fled the scene in his vehicle.
Duff was arrested on December 8, 2023, and has been in custody since. The Metropolitan Police Department investigated the case, and Interim Chief Jeffery Carroll joined the announcement. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Joshua Hall and Wes Faulkner prosecuted the case. (Source: U.S. Department of Justice)
Source: U.S. Department of Justice
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：位于华盛顿特区的 H. Carl Moultrie 法院大楼，哥伦比亚特区高等法院所在地，本案在此宣判。APK 摄，CC BY 4.0，经 Wikimedia Commons。 / Photo: The H. Carl Moultrie Courthouse in Washington, D.C., home of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, where the sentence was imposed. By APK, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
