Coos County Man Sentenced to 27 Months for Being a Felon in Possession of a Firearm and Ammunition

EUGENE, Ore. – On September 4, 2014, Richard Walsh Curtis, 44 years, of Coos Bay, Oregon, was sentenced by U.S. District Chief Judge Ann Aiken to 27 months in federal prison for unlawful possession of a firearm and ammunition.  Upon his release from prison, Curtis will be on supervised release for three years. 

On August 18, 2012, officers responded to a rural property near Coos Bay because a caller had reported that Curtis, a known felon, was shooting a firearm into the trees.  Upon arrival, officers encountered Curtis and seized a loaded .22 caliber revolver from him.  Officers learned that Curtis had previously shown the firearm to a young child and had a history of terrorizing the neighbors – for instance, one neighbor reported Curtis had used a chainsaw to cut open his house door and then assaulted him. Curtis has prior felony convictions for assault in the fourth degree constituting domestic violence, felon in possession of a firearm, and possession of a controlled substance.

This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Oregon State Police, and the Coos County Sheriff’s Office, and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Nathan J. Lichvarcik.