Milwaukee Man Sentenced on Federal Gun Charge as an Armed Career Criminal

Gregory J. Haanstad, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, announced that Justin King Nalls (age: 27) of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, appeared in federal court in Green Bay and was sentenced to 180 months in federal prison for being a felon in possession of a firearm. Based on his criminal record of violent felonies, Nalls qualified as an Armed Career Criminal under federal law which required that he be sentenced to not less than 15 years and up to a lifetime in prison. He was convicted in state court of two armed robberies in 2005 and a burglary in 2009.

Nalls was arrested in October of 2014 for his role in the armed robbery of a Kewaunee County tavern. Further investigation linked Nalls to an additional armed robbery in Sheboygan County and a violent robbery in the City of Milwaukee. Nalls and a female associate placed ads offering prostitution services online, and then robbed at gunpoint those who responded to the advertisements. A search of Nalls’ residence and vehicle yielded a loaded .44 revolver and ammunition for a .357 caliber firearm, both of which are illegal for Nalls or any felon to possess.

In pronouncing sentence, Chief U.S. District Court Judge William C. Griesbach noted the need to protect the community from future criminal acts, the need to send a strong message of deterrence to others, as well as the substantial penalties that the U.S. Congress ascribes to individuals like Nalls with violent felony convictions in their past.   

The case was investigated by the Kewaunee County Sheriff’s Department, the City of Kewaunee Police Department, the Kewaunee County District Attorney’s Office, the Wisconsin Department of Justice - Division of Criminal Investigation, and the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF). It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Daniel R. Humble.