Harrisburg Man Pleads Guilty To Illegal Possession Of A Firearm

HARRISBURG - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced today that a Harrisburg man has pleaded guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm.  Shaun L. Graves, age 33, entered a guilty plea today to the charge before Senior U.S. District Court Judge William Caldwell in Harrisburg.  The plea was conditional so that Graves can appeal Judge Caldwell’s December 2, 2015 denial of his motion to suppress the firearm to the U.S. Court of Appeals.  

The Indictment stems from an October 16, 2014, incident in South Harrisburg in which Graves was arrested by Harrisburg police officers and was found to be in possession of a loaded Bersa .380 caliber semi-automatic pistol with an obliterated serial number.

The case was investigated by the Harrisburg Office of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco,  Firearms and Explosives and is being prosecuted by Assistant US Attorney Kim Douglas Daniel.

This case is part of the Violent Crime Reduction Partnership (“VCRP”), a districtwide initiative to combat the spread of violent crime in the Middle District of Pennsylvania. Led by the United States Attorney’s Office, the VCRP consists of federal, state and local law enforcement agencies whose mission is to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who commit violent crimes.

A sentence following a finding of guilt is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.

The maximum penalty for the felon in possession charge is life imprisonment. The maximum term of imprisonment for the obliterated serial number charge is five years imprisonment.

Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the Judge is also required to consider and weigh a number of factors, including the nature, circumstances and seriousness of the offense; the history and characteristics of the defendant; and the need to punish the defendant, protect the public and provide for the defendant's educational, vocational and medical needs. For these reasons, the statutory maximum penalty for the offense is not an accurate indicator of the potential sentence for a specific defendant.

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