Idaho Falls Man Sentenced For Possessing Sawed-off Shotgun

POCATELLO – Timothy Scott Murphy, 25, of Idaho Falls, Idaho, was sentenced today in United States District Court to 39 months in prison, consecutive to the state sentence he is currently serving, followed by three years of supervised release for possession of an unregistered firearm, U.S. Attorney Wendy J. Olson announced. Chief U.S. District Judge B. Lynn Winmill also ordered Murphy to forfeit the firearm. Murphy pleaded guilty to the charge on May 22, 2012.

During the plea hearing, federal prosecutors informed the Court that on February 21, 2012, Idaho Falls Police officers received reports that Murphy was in possession of a sawed-off shotgun. Law enforcement officers located Murphy at a residence in Idaho Falls. Murphy left the house carrying a sawed-off shotgun, but when he saw the police officers he returned to the house. Following a four-hour standoff, Murphy surrendered to police. The sawed-off shotgun was recovered from inside the house. The firearm, made from a Maverick 12-gauge shotgun, had a barrel length of approximately 16 inches; however, the minimum legal barrel length for shotguns is 18 inches. Shotguns with barrel lengths of less than 18 inches must be registered in the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record and Murphy had no such firearms registered to him.

The case was investigated by the Idaho Falls Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

The case was prosecuted as part of Idaho’s Project Safe Neighborhoods Program, which seeks to reduce gun violence in Idaho.