NORTHSIDE GANG MEMBER TO SERVE 30 MONTHS

A member of the Northside criminal street gang will serve 30 months in federal prison for possessing a firearm while being addicted to a controlled substance.

Christopher Ohlsson, 28, of Middleton was sentenced before U.S. District Judge Edward J. Lodge at the federal courthouse in Boise on September 10. After Ohlsson completes his prison term, he will be on supervised release for three years, during which time he may have no contact with any documented gang member, and will be subject to random drug testing.

Ohlsson was arrested on an outstanding warrant on November 7, 2006, in Canyon County. Sheriff's Deputies found two loaded handguns inside the vehicle in which Ohlsson was a passenger. Ohlsson admitted to officers that he possessed the firearms and that he frequently used marijuana. He also admitted that he had used both marijuana and methamphetamine that day. Under federal law, it is a felony for a drug user to possess a firearm.

While this was Ohlsson's first felony offense, he had been convicted of 20 prior misdemeanors in the Treasure Valley. The U.S. Attorney's Office argued that the 30 month sentence was warranted because of Ohlsson's 14-year involvement with a criminal street gang, and because of evidence that he supplied guns to other gang members.

Because there is no parole and only very limited "good time" in the federal system, Ohlsson is expected to serve all or most of his sentence. Since Idaho has no federal penitentiary, Ohlsson will serve his sentence out of state.

The case was investigated by the Canyon County Sheriff's Office and the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.