Brown avoids prison in fatal Northwest hospital crash

At a Nov. 5 D.C. Superior Court hearing, Judge Jason Park suspended Kayla Brown's three-year prison term and ordered three years' probation for a fatal crash at MedStar Washington Hospital Center in Northwest Washington.

The sentence keeps Brown, 24, out of prison after an April 8 plea in a case where Judge Park said the combined maximum was five years and both counts allowed probation. The crash occurred on hospital grounds used by patients, employees and visitors.

Brown pleaded guilty to negligent homicide and unauthorized use of a vehicle tied to the June 3, 2024 death of Leslie Gaines, 55, on the 100 block of Irving Street NW. Brown entered an Alford plea, a guilty plea that allowed her to maintain innocence while accepting that prosecutors had enough evidence likely to convict at trial.

The case centered on Brown leaving the hospital, taking a car with Gaines still inside and crashing it, resulting in Gaines' death. At an earlier Oct. 23 hearing, Judge Park said Brown faced six to 24 months for unauthorized use of a vehicle and 12 to 36 months for negligent homicide.

Gaines' relatives urged the court to impose the maximum sentence. Her 18-year-old granddaughter told the court Brown “gave us a life sentence we all have to live with,” saying no sentence could replace Gaines' absence.

Gaines' younger sister said Gaines was handicapped and should have been safe in a vehicle outside the hospital. “To know Leslie was to love her,” the sister said, describing Gaines as “truly an angel on Earth.”

Prosecutors said Brown deserved incarceration and opposed a request under the Youth Rehabilitation Act. The law can allow eligible defendants who committed certain offenses before age 25 to receive more lenient treatment and, after completing requirements, seek to have a conviction sealed.

Brown's defense attorney, Sylvia Smith, argued that Brown was experiencing a mental health crisis on the day of the crash. Smith said Brown's family had called for help because she had extremely high blood pressure and panic, and that Brown later was taken from home by police to the hospital.

Smith said Brown's conduct that day was not intentional and cited body-worn camera footage and Department of Behavioral Health records. She said Brown had experienced psychosis before June 2024 and remained engaged in monitored mental-health treatment.

Judge Park called the case a “very challenging sentencing” because the death was not intentional. He said prosecutors did not dispute Brown's mental-health issues or lack of criminal history, while also noting that the incident happened in the middle of the day in a crowded area.

The judge disagreed with Smith's description of the initial police response, saying body-worn camera footage showed officers acting with care and compassion while taking Brown to an ambulance and making sure she understood what was happening.

At the continued sentencing, Park imposed 24 months for unauthorized use of a vehicle and 36 months for negligent homicide, to run concurrently. He suspended the full term and placed Brown under the mental health unit of the Court Services and Offender Supervision Agency.

Brown must wear a Global Positioning System monitoring device for the first 90 days of probation, with permission to leave home for job interviews and employment. She also must complete 90 hours of community service and pay $300 to the Victims of Violent Crime Compensation Fund by May 5, 2027.

No further court dates were set.

Source: D.C. Superior Court sentencing proceeding, Nov. 5.