ARMED CAREER CRIMINAL CONVICTED OF ILLEGALLY POSSESSING A FIREARM
BOSTON, Mass. - An Easthampton man was convicted today in federal court of one count of illegally possessing a firearm after having been convicted of a felony.
JEREMY WRIGHT, 37, was convicted by a jury sitting before U.S. District Judge Michael A. Ponsor of one count of possessing a Raven .25 caliber pistol after being convicted of a crime punishable by more than one year in prison.
Evidence presented during the six-day trial showed that in January 2005, WRIGHT received two pistols, including a Raven .25 caliber pistol and a Bryco 9mm pistol, that were stolen from a home in Westfield and then traded both pistols for crack cocaine to a narcotics trafficker in Holyoke. In April 2005, WRIGHT received three shotguns and a rifle that were stolen from a home in Easthampton and then traded the four long guns for crack cocaine and cash to various individuals, including two narcotics traffickers, in Holyoke. At the time of this misconduct, WRIGHT had been previously convicted of a crime punishable by more than one year in prison, making his possession of the firearms illegal. Judge Ponsor declared a mistrial on one count of possessing the Bryco 9mm pistol after a felony conviction and one count of illegal firearms dealing after the jury deadlocked on these two counts.
Judge Ponsor scheduled sentencing for October 6, 2011. Because WRIGHT has three qualifying violent felonies, he faces a mandatory minimum15 years imprisonment and a maximum of life imprisonment as an armed career criminal, to be followed by a maximum of five years of supervised release and a maximum $250,000 fine.
United States Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz; Guy N. Thomas, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives - Boston Field Division; Chief Bruce McMahon of the Easthampton Police Department; Interim Chief Frederick J. Seklecki of the Holyoke Police Department; Chief John A. Camerota of the Westfield Police Department; and Chief Daryl K. Roberts of the Hartford, Connecticut Police Department made the announcement today. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Steven H. Breslow of Ortiz’s Springfield Branch Office.
