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Press Release

New Orleans Man Pleads Guilty to Possession of a Firearm by a Prohibited Person

For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, Eastern District of Louisiana

U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that KEITH A. JAMES, age 27, of New Orleans, pled guilty yesterday to being a felon in possession of a firearm.   U.S. District Judge Martin L.C. Feldman set JAMES’s sentencing on September 26, 2018. 

According to court documents, JAMES was found in possession of a firearm on July 11, 2017, after pleading guilty in 2008 to three counts of armed robbery and three counts of purse snatching in the Criminal District Court for the Parish of Orleans.  JAMES faces a maximum prison term of 10 years to be followed by a three year term of supervised release.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program that has been historically successful in bringing together all levels of law enforcement to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone.   Attorney General Jeff Sessions has made turning the tide of rising violent crime in America a top priority.   In October 2017, as part of a series of actions to address this crime trend, Attorney General Sessions announced the reinvigoration of PSN and directed all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to develop a district crime-reduction strategy that incorporates the lessons learned since PSN launched in 2001.

U.S. Attorney Evans praised the work of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms and Louisiana Probation & Parole.  Assistant United States Attorney Michael McMahon is in charge of the prosecution.

Updated June 14, 2018

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