Armed Career Criminal sentenced to 15 years for St. Louis gun crime

ST. LOUIS – U.S. District Judge Audrey G. Fleissig on Tuesday sentenced a St. Louis man with a long and violent criminal history to 15 years in prison for a gun crime.

On Dec. 2, 2020, Steven D. Huffman was caught by St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department officers in the 7200 block of Pennsylvania Avenue in St. Louis with a Taurus 9mm pistol in his backpack. A tipster said Huffman was always armed, despite being a convicted felon, and was causing issues in the neighborhood. He was also on parole from a prior criminal conviction. Huffman initially ran from police before resisting arrest and threatening to kill at least two officers. Huffman threatened to shoot one officer in the face and then murder his family, he admitted in his plea agreement.

Huffman, 54, pleaded guilty in March to a felony charge of being a felon in possession of a firearm. Judge Fleissig determined on Tuesday that due to his extensive criminal history involving a series of violent incidents, Huffman qualified as an “armed career criminal,” which meant he faced a 15-year mandatory prison term.

The case was investigated by the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department.