Federal Jury Convicts Twin Falls Man, Who Shot at Police Officer in Shoshone, on Gun and Drug Charges

BOISE – U.S. Attorney Bart M. Davis announced today that a federal jury convicted Jesus Javier Malagon, 31, of Twin Falls, of unlawfully possessing firearms as a felon, possessing marijuana with the intent to distribute, and using and discharging a firearm during and in relation to the drug trafficking crime.  Malagon was indicted by a federal grand jury on February 14, 2018.  The trial began on Monday, February 11, 2019, and concluded on Friday evening when the jury returned their verdicts.

Malagon’s case stemmed from a traffic stop on January 30, 2018, in Shoshone, Idaho.  Malagon fled from the traffic stop and a high-speed pursuit with police ensued.  Malagon eventually crashed his vehicle.  When a police officer approached Malagon after the crash, Malagon shot a 9 millimeter handgun at the police officer.  The officer immediately returned fire, striking Malagon multiple times.  Malagon suffered non-life threatening injuries from the shooting.  A subsequent search of Malagon’s vehicle yielded the 9 millimeter handgun, an additional .38 caliber revolver, multiple pounds of marijuana, and other items showing that Malagon was distributing marijuana.  Malagon was a felon and therefore prohibited from possessing firearms.  His prior felony conviction was for manufacturing marijuana.

Sentencing is scheduled for May 9, 2019, before U.S. District Judge B. Lynn Winmill at the federal courthouse in Boise.  The crime of unlawful possession of firearms by a felon is punishable by up to ten years in prison and three years of supervised release.  The crime of possession of marijuana with intent to distribute, as enhanced by Malagon’s prior marijuana manufacturing conviction, is punishable by up to ten years in prison and at least four years of supervised release.  The crime of using and discharging a firearm during and in relation to the drug trafficking crime is punishable by a mandatory minimum of ten years, and up to life in prison, which must be served consecutively to all other sentences, and up to five years of supervised release.

The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Shoshone City Police Department, Gooding County Sheriff’s Office, and the Critical Incident Task Force, which included Idaho State Police, Twin Falls Sheriff’s Office, and the Twin Falls Police Department.

This case was prosecuted as part of the Department of Justice’s Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) program.  PSN is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts.  PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime.  Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them.  As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

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