Felon Sentenced in Possession of Firearm That Had Been Outfitted with a Machine Gun ‘Giggle Switch’

            WASHINGTON – Sherwood Russell, 35, a previously convicted felon residing in the District of Columbia, was sentenced today in U.S. District Court to 27 months in federal prison for illegal possession of a firearm outfitted with a machine gun conversion device during which he struck a police officer with his vehicle, assaulted a woman, resisted arrest, and threatened an additional police officer, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.

            Russell pleaded guilty on Sept. 4, 2025, to unlawful possession of a firearm and ammunition by a felon. In addition to the prison term, Judge Christopher R. Cooper ordered Russell to serve three years of supervised release.

            Joining in the announcement were Special Agent in Charge Anthony Spotswood of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and Chief Pamela A. Smith of the Metropolitan Police Department.

            According to court documents, on May 4, 2025, about 6:46 p.m., MPD officers responded to a call for a domestic disturbance on the 2000 block of 11th St. NW.  Officers observed Russell grabbing a woman by her arms. Russell then entered his vehicle, a white Tesla with New Jersey tags.

            An officer instructed Russell to exit the vehicle. Instead, Russell turned the wheel,  accelerated the vehicle, and struck the officer in the leg. After crashing into a fence, Russell exited the vehicle and attempted to flee. Officers tackled Russell and placed him under arrest.

            Officers looked into Russell’s vehicle and noticed a spilled open container of alcohol in the front seat. While conducting a probable cause search of the vehicle for more open containers of alcohol, officers recovered a Glock 23 .40 caliber pistol, loaded with 26 rounds of ammunition. The Glock was modified with a “giggle switch” that converted the semi-automatic into a fully automatic machine gun.

            Russell previously was convicted in 2011 of burglary one while armed with gun, assault with a dangerous weapon (AWD), and related counts and sentenced to 10 years in prison on the burglary conviction and 30 months for the AWD.

            This case was investigated by the ATF and the MPD. It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney David Liss.

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