Bank Robber-Turned Georgetown Law Professor Found Guilty of Assaulting Wife

Following up on my previous posts (links below): Washington Post, Former Robber Turned Law Professor in D.C. Found Guilty of Assaulting Wife:

Shon Hopwood spent nearly 11 years in prison for robbing five banks in Nebraska in the late 1990s. After his release, he reinvented himself, graduating from law school, joining the law faculty at Georgetown University in 2017 and becoming a White House adviser on criminal justice reform.

Now Hopwood, 50, faces another stint in prison. He was convicted Friday of assaulting his wife, ignoring a judge’s order to stay away from her and trying to get her to drop the charges against him.

A D.C. Superior Court jury of eight men and four women found Hopwood guilty of 11 out of 12 charges. Hopwood, who was released from custody shortly after his arrest in 2023, showed no emotion as the verdicts were read, chewing gum as he sat next to his attorney. After prosecutors asked Judge Errol Arthur to order Hopwood jailed pending his sentencing, set for Sept. 18, Hopwood spoke up.

“I will not flee,” he told the judge.

But Arthur agreed with prosecutors and ordered Hopwood to be held. He could face several years in prison, and his sentence could be enhanced because of his earlier bank robbery offenses.

During the emotional, weeks-long trial, Hopwood repeatedly denied allegations that he slapped, pushed and shoved his wife of 16 years, Ann Marie Hopwood, in front of their teenage children. Hopwood’s daughter, who broke down in tears on the witness stand, testified against him, describing the abuse.

“I loved him. I wanted to be loyal to him. I didn’t want to get him in trouble. I hoped things would change,” Ann Marie Hopwood told the jury. “But if I asked too many questions, he would get irritated.”

She said the abuse started as verbal, then turned physical. A chipped tooth, a broken pinkie finger and bruises on her forehead, back and arms — all resulting from her husband’s hands. Hats, sunglasses, long-sleeve shirts in the summer and medical face masks were part of her regular attire at one point, she said. …

The two are now legally separated. A Georgetown University spokesperson said Hopwood is on leave from the law school.