Violent Felon Sentenced To More Than 10 Years In Prison For Illegal Gun

BATON ROUGE, LA –United States Attorney Walt Green announced that Michel Keith Lands, age 42, of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, has been sentenced to a total of 125 months in federal prison as a result of possessing a firearm while a convicted felon and violating the terms of his supervised release.

In the early hours of November 14, 2014, Baton Rouge City Police (BRPD) was called to a home on Byron Street.  The caller told police that Lands had a gun, had fired a shot, and was attempting to kill the occupants of the home.  After a struggle, BRPD apprehended Lands and recovered two spent .40 caliber shell casings and recovered one expended bullet slug all from inside the house.   The BRPD also recovered a .40 caliber semi-automatic pistol with four live .40 caliber rounds in the magazine.  Lands had previously been convicted of federal and state felony offenses which prohibited him from ever possessing any type of firearm. 

Based on the November 2014 incident, Lands was indicted and convicted of being a felon in possession of a firearm.  Senior U.S. District Court Judge James J. Brady today sentenced Lands to 110 months imprisonment.  Also, because Lands was on federal supervised release at the time of the November 2014 incident, the Court found that Lands violated the terms of his supervised release and sentenced him to an additional 15 months in federal prison for the violation. 

U.S. Attorney Walt Green stated:  “This is another example of the danger posed by felons with guns.  Keeping our communities safe from such criminals will continue to be one of my office’s highest priorities.”

This matter was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Lyman E. Thornton III and investigated by the Baton Rouge Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF).