New Orleans Resident Guilty of Being Felon in Possession of a Firearm

NEW ORLEANS – Acting U.S. Attorney Michael M. Simpson announced that DERRICK HINES, age 52, of New Orleans, pleaded guilty on June 5, 2025, before U.S. District Judge Nanette Jolivette Brown, to being a felon in possession of a firearm.  Sentencing is set for October 9, 2025.

According to court documents, on September 28, 2023, while investigating a shooting, New Orleans Police Department officers discovered that DERRICK HINES illegally possessed a firearm after previously being convicted of a felony.

The maximum penalty for this firearm offense is fifteen years imprisonment and/or a fine of up to $250,000, followed by up to three years of supervised release, and a mandatory special assessment fee of one hundred dollars.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone.  On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.

Acting U.S. Attorney Simpson praised the work of the New Orleans Police Department in investigating this matter. Assistant United States Attorney Richard R. Pickens, II of the Financial Crimes Unit is in charge of the prosecution.