Hartford Man Admits Illegally Possessing Firearms

Leonard C Boyle, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, today announced that GEORGE HARRIS, 40, of Hartford, pleaded guilty yesterday before U.S. District Judge Jeffrey A. Meyer in New Haven to possession of a firearm by a felon.

According to court documents and statements made in court, on July 12, 2020, Harris was transported by ambulance to Hartford Hospital in an intoxicated state.  When the attending nurse began changing Harris out of his clothes and into hospital garments, a loaded .38 caliber semiautomatic pistol fell from one of his pants pockets.

Prior to July 2020, Harris had been convicted of a felony risk of injury of a child offense.  It is a violation of federal law for a person previously convicted of a felony offense to possess a firearm or ammunition that has moved in interstate or foreign commerce.

Harris has been detained since his arrest on July 17, 2021.  At the time of his arrest, he possessed another loaded semiautomatic pistol.

At sentencing, Harris faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years.

This matter has been investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Hartford Police Department.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Henry Kopel.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts.  PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime.  Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them.  As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.