Essex County, New Jersey, Man Convicted of Being Felon in Possession of Firearm

NEWARK, N.J. – An Essex County, New Jersey, man has been convicted of being a felon in possession of a firearm, New Jersey, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito announced today.

Shakey Hoover, 38, of Newark, was convicted March 27, 2019, of one count of being a felon in possession of a weapon following a two-day trial before U.S. District Judge Stanley R. Chesler in Newark federal court. The jury deliberated 90 minutes before returning the guilty verdict.

According to documents filed in this case and the evidence at trial:

On the evening of April 23, 2017, four individuals — Lashaunda Glenn, her boyfriend, her sister, and her sister's boyfriend — arrived by car at Glenn’s mother’s house in Newark to pick up a television belonging to Glenn’s sister. Glenn’s mother lived in the third-floor apartment of the house with Hoover, her longtime boyfriend and a convicted felon.

Glenn and Hoover began arguing. As the confrontation became more heated, Hoover pulled from his waistband a small silver revolver, pointed it at the group, and threatened to kill them. Glenn and her companions ran to a nearby police station to report what had happened. Newark police arrived at the house a few minutes later and found a silver revolver loaded with one bullet. An examination of the gun found Hoover’s fingerprint on it.

The count of being a felon in possession of a firearm carries a maximum potential penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Sentencing is scheduled for July 10, 2019.

U.S. Attorney Carpenito credited the Newark Police Department, under the direction of Public Safety Director Anthony Ambrose; the N.J. State Police, under the direction of Col. Patrick J. Callahan; and special agents of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Christopher Taylor in Newark, with the investigation leading to the guilty verdict.

The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jason S. Gould and Stephen Ferketic of the Criminal Divison in Newark.