A National Guard trooper assigned to patrol the District faces felony charges after he was accused of pointing his service pistol at another soldier during an argument about military-approved hairstyles, court documents said.
A D.C. Superior Court affidavit said Spc. Zion Mitchell, 21, was charged with assault with a dangerous weapon and gun violations in the verbal spat that escalated into an alleged crime last month near a Popeyes restaurant on H Street Northeast.
The document said Spc. Mitchell, of Macon, Georgia, was arguing with the other trooper about whether their hairstyles were following Army regulations.
The victim told police that at one point in the argument, inside a van during a break around 11:30 a.m. on Aug. 25, Spc. Mitchell threatened to “slap the Jackson 5 out of you,” according to the filing. The two traded barbs, with the victim telling the suspect to “shut the f—- up.”
The affidavit said the victim, who was sitting in the front of the van, then heard what she described as a “holster click.” Another trooper in the car told Spc. Mitchell, who was sitting in the back row, “Put that up. You almost shot me in the hand.”
Six witnesses, all National Guard troops, were inside or near the van during the argument, court documents said. At least four said they saw Spc. Mitchell pull out his gun and aim at the victim.
The filing said the gun was likely loaded and had a round chambered. Spc. Mitchell allegedly tried to defuse the situation by telling the other guardsmen that the weapon had its safety on.
The affidavit said in an interview with Metropolitan Police, Spc. Mitchell originally told investigators he pulled the gun out as a form of “playful banter” with the victim.
Spc. Mitchell later recanted his initial framing of the incident and acknowledged that he did point the gun in the victim’s direction, but it was downward and not at the back of her head.
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