Prosecutors Secure Lengthy Prison Sentence for Habitual Offender

Defendant committed violent 2011 robberies of Wilmington barbershops;

Convicted of attempted murder, 29 other charges

WILMINGTON The man convicted of committing two violent robberies of Wilmington barbershops was declared a habitual offender today by a New Castle County Superior Court judge and will spend the rest of his life in prison, Attorney General Beau Biden announced.

Superior Court M. Jane Brady granted a request by prosecutors in Biden’s office that 25-year-old Rashie T. Harris be sentenced under the state’s habitual offender law. Harris has been convicted of 30 offenses, including multiple violent felonies. Harris’ habitual offender status triggered significantly enhanced sentences under Delaware law. Brady sentenced Harris to a life term plus 527 years today.

Harris was convicted of the following charges:

  • Attempted Murder First Degree
  • 11 Counts of Possession of a Firearm During the Commission of a Felony
  • 2 Counts of Burglary Second Degree
  • 8 Counts of Robbery First Degree
  • 2 Counts of Possession of a Deadly Weapon by a Person Prohibited
  • Unlawful Sexual Contact 1st Degree
  • Kidnapping Second Degree
  • Endangering the Welfare of a Child
  • Carrying a Concealed Deadly Weapon
  • Resisting Arrest
  • Possession of Marijuana

Harris committed a robbery at the Runnway Barbershop in the Southbridge neighborhood of Wilmington in January 2011. During the robbery, he shot a barber in the chest, and the barber was paralyzed.

Less than a week after the Runnway robbery, Harris violently robbed the Legends Barbershop in Wilmington by shutting the blinds, locking the shop’s door and ordering the barbers and patrons in the shop to get on the ground. He also ordered his victims to take off their shoes and empty their pockets and threatened to kill them if they talked to police. After Harris left the barbershop, he was chased by one of the barbers (who was still barefoot), and was apprehended after barber alerted a Wilmington Police Department patrol car.

 

Deputy Attorneys General Mark Denney and Caterina Gatto prosecuted this case for the Delaware Department of Justice.

 

“This is an outstanding result from two dedicated prosecutors who work hard every day to advance the cause of justice in Delaware,” Biden said.

 

A booking Image of  Rashie T. Harris is below

Rashie Harris Booking Image