La Plata, MD – Travell Samar Bates, 17 of Waldorf, was the third person to be sentenced this year in Charles County Circuit Court for a pair of November 2014 robberies when he appeared before Judge H. James West Tuesday, Aug. 25 in La Plata.
One of his co-defendants, Anthony Robert Durham, 19 of Indian Head, was sentenced to 414 months in Charles County Circuit Court July 27.
Bates played a minor role in the robberies, defense attorney Hugh Williams asserted, and filed a motion to have Bates’ offenses transferred to juvenile court, since at age 17 he is still a minor.
Williams argued that Bates was a “17-year-old who made a mistake,” he told West.
“He’s very remorseful. To sentence him as an adult would serve no purpose. He has a great supporting family and all he’s asking for is an opportunity to turn himself around.”
“The state is very much opposed to treating the defendant as a juvenile,” Charles County Assistant State’s Attorney Tiffany Campbell told the court. “The state feels that he has already been given a break. He will be 18 in November and there are limitations to what the Department of Juvenile Services can provide after he turns 18. The facts of the case do not warrant sending him back to DJS. He was engaged and involved with these individuals who committed a serious offense. It’s proper that he be treated as an adult,” she added.
“He chose to be involved with these individuals,” Campbell stated.
“As I recall, this was an extremely violent crime with weapons,” West noted. “The problem I have is that after the first incident, if he was thinking I do not want to be involved in this, he should have gotten out before the second incident.”
Williams said his client was banned from St. Charles High School where he was in 11th grade after he was charged in the case.
“Mr. Bates did not actively participate in the robberies,” Williams added. “He did not take anything. He’s never been in trouble before.”
“This is the type of crime that requires a jail sentence,” West responded.
The judge sentenced Bates to 15 years on the conspiracy to commit robbery charge, suspending all but 18 months. On the assault charge, he sentenced the young man to 10 years with all but 45 days suspended.
He allowed the defendant to report Sept. 11 and said he wants “a good letter” to the victims apologizing for his actions before that date. He said Bates could serve his time in the Charles County Detention Center with work and school release granted. West also tacked on five years of unsupervised probation.
Contact Joseph Norris at joe.norris@thebaynet.com