Convicted felon and documented gang member Taylor Washington, 24, was gunned down by a barrage of bullets on April 10, 2025, in Fresno. On Wednesday, Sept. 3, his mother, Jawana Washington, 45, was convicted in federal court of providing him a 9 mm handgun in 2022. Both were indicted in "Operation No Fly Zone." (Shutterstock)
- Jawana Washington is the mother of Taylor Washington, gunned down in a hail of 32 bullets fired April 10 in southwest Fresno.
- Jawana Washington was convicted Wednesday in federal court of giving a 9 mm handgun to her felon gang-member son in 2022.
- Taylor Washington served 21 months in federal prison and then was killed in what police say was a gang-related homicide.
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The multi-generational trauma of Fresno gangs was on full display Wednesday in U.S. District Judge Dale A. Drozd’s courtroom.
Dale A. Drozd found Jawana Washington, 45, of Fresno, guilty of giving her gang member felon son a 9mm handgun.
That’s the story other Fresno media reported.
But it’s only half of the story.
Washington’s Son Killed by a Barrage of Bullets in April
Jawana Washington is the mother of Taylor Washington, gunned down in a hail of 32-bullets on April 10 near Bardell and George avenues in southwest Fresno.
Like his mother, he was indicted and convicted in “Operation No Fly Zone,” a headline-grabbing, months-long, multi-agency investigation into local gangs. The effort yielded the arrests of more than 40 suspects, including six on federal charges.
Taylor Washington, 21 at the time of his April 2022 arrest, served 21 months in prison following his conviction for being a felon in possession of a firearm. He lived to be just 24 years old.
Live by the gun. Die by the gun.
Taylor had only been out of prison a short while before becoming Fresno’s fifth homicide victim of 2025. Fresno police say his killing was gang-related.
Mom Told Son Not to Do Anything ‘Crazy’
According to the evidence presented at Jawana Washington’s trial, she agreed to lend Taylor her gun, cautioning him not to do anything “crazy,” to use his own ammunition, and not to get her sent to jail.
Minutes later, agents observed Taylor arrive at his mother’s apartment complex, meet with her, and leave in a vehicle. During a traffic stop, officers recovered a Springfield Armory XD-9 handgun, registered to his mother, from the center console of the car Taylor was driving.
After the stop, his mother sent messages to others in which she acknowledged that Taylor had her gun and urged everyone to delete incriminating text messages, prosecutors said.
Jawana Washington is scheduled to be sentenced on Dec. 15 by Judge Drozd. She faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison.
Got a Tip?
Meanwhile, Fresno police continue to search for Taylor’s killer.
Anyone with information is asked to call Fresno homicide detective M. Moreno at (559) 621-2443 or detective J. Adney at (559) 621-2445.
You can also relay anonymous tips to Valley Crime Stoppers at (559) 498-STOP.
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