HUBERT THEODORE ISABEL, 25, of Seattle, Washington, was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to 46 months in prison and 3 years of supervised release for being a Felon in Possession of a Firearm. At sentencing U.S. District Judge John C. Coughenour noted ISABEL “has a serious criminal history, he was at Second and Pike, with a firearm he shouldn’t have.”

According to records filed in the case, Seattle Police Department officers were on bike patrol in the area of Second Avenue and Pike Street at about 10:00 pm on July 26, 2007, when they saw two drug transactions occur. They arrested the dealer shortly thereafter in a car parked nearby. When the officers approached the car, they saw a man sitting alone in the rear seat. The man, later identified as ISABEL, removed a black object approximately 8-10 inches in length from his waist band. One of the officers then saw ISABEL drop the object to the floor, followed by a loud thud. ISABEL then kicked the object under the front passenger seat in an apparent attempt to conceal it. A search of the rear passenger seat area of the car revealed a fully-loaded Springfield Armory 40 caliber semiautomatic pistol and a black nylon holster containing a second loaded magazine. Isabel was prohibited to possess a gun because of felony convictions for Assault in the Second Degree (2001), Assault (on a police officer) in the Third Degree (2004), and Possession of Crack Cocaine (2004).

At the sentencing hearing the federal prosecutor asked for a 100 month sentence, based on the violent nature of his prior convictions, including assaulting two Seattle police officers, and his possession of the gun in connection with two drug transactions. In sentencing ISABEL, Judge Coughenour declined to impose the stiffer sentence but scolded ISABEL, telling him that he had no business being in the high crime area at that hour with a loaded handgun, particularly in view of his prior felony convictions. However, the judge noted the difficulty young disadvantaged black men have in finding a crime free life when they have little education and poor role models as youngsters.

This case was investigated by the Seattle Police Department and the Seattle Violent Crime Task Force of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).

The case was 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, at (206) 553-4110.

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