March 26, 2009

SAN FRANCISCO MAN SENTENCED TO 15 YEARS FOR ILLEGAL FIREARM POSSESSION

SAN FRANCISCO – Maurice Allen was sentenced today to 15 years in prison for being a felon in possession of a firearm, United States Attorney Joseph P. Russoniello announced.

Allen pleaded guilty on December 10, 2008, to being a felon in possession of a firearm, in violation of Title 18, United States Code section 922(g). According to the plea agreement, Allen admitted to possessing a Ruger .45 caliber pistol on June 18, 2008. Allen, 38, of San Francisco, was indicted by a federal grand jury on July 15, 2008.

Allen’s 15-year sentence was imposed under the Armed Career Criminal Act, 18 U.S.C. § 924(e), which provides a mandatory minimum 15-year prison sentence for a defendant convicted of being a felon in possession of a firearm who was previously convicted of at least three violent felonies or serious drug offenses. In 1992, Allen was convicted of assault with a deadly weapon for beating a woman with a baseball bat, and of voluntary manslaughter for shooting a man during a dispute over a car accident. 1n 2001, Allen was convicted in federal court of possessing cocaine base with the intent to distribute.

The sentence was handed down by U.S. District Court Judge Phyllis J. Hamilton following a guilty plea to one count in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 922(g), being a felon in possession of a firearm. Judge Hamilton also sentenced the defendant to a three-year period of supervised release. The defendant is already in custody, and will begin serving the sentence immediately.

Owen Martikan is the Assistant U.S. Attorney who is prosecuting the case with the assistance of Marina Ponomarchuk. The prosecution is the result of an investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives.

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For more information on federal criminal defense law, contact the Law Offices of Joseph Shemaria of Los Angeles, California.