COWLITZ COUNTY ARMED FELON SENTENCED
BRADFORD LANORIS JONES, 39, of Longview, Washington, was sentenced to eight years in prison by U.S. District Judge Ronald B. Leighton for being a Felon in Possession of a Firearm.
JONES has multiple drug convictions, including: delivery of cocaine (1991), possession of cocaine (1996), delivery of heroin and eluding police (1999), possession of methamphetamine (2003), and possession of cocaine (2003).
Police searched JONES' residence in November 2004 as part of a drug investigation. A Smith and Wesson, model 10-5, .38 caliber revolver was found under the bed in the room rented to JONES. In fact, at the time of his arrest JONES was sitting directly above the firearm. Officers also found cocaine, methamphetamine, heroin, drug paraphernalia and $5,000 in the residence.
JONES was identified for federal prosecution as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a federal initiative aimed at reducing gun violence by keeping guns out of the hands of felons. In Western Washington, federal dollars pay for additional prosecutors in Pierce, Kitsap, King and Cowlitz counties to identify those cases that are appropriate for federal prosecution. The JONES case is representative of the ongoing joint effort of local and federal authorities to identify and prosecute federal cases involving allegations of illegal firearms possession by convicted felons. Not only does federal prosecution often result in longer prison terms, a federal sentence often removes felons from their home area so they are no longer able to interact with familiar criminal cohorts. In Richmond, Virginia, during a pilot program of Project Safe Neighborhoods, the number of gun homicides dropped by nearly 50% between 1997 and 2000.
The case was investigated by the Longview Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives (ATF). The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney William H. Redkey, Jr. For additional information please contact Emily Langlie, Public Affairs Officer for the United States Attorney's Office, Western District of Washington, at (206) 553-4110.
