Gun Crime Draws Hard Time for Convicted Felon

SAVANNAH, GA: A career criminal with a violent history will spend nearly nine years in federal prison after sentencing this week for carrying a stolen pistol.

U.S. District Court Judge Lisa Godbey Wood sentenced Joseph Price, 33, to 105 months in federal prison after being convicted of Possession of a Stolen Firearm, said Southern District U.S. Attorney Bobby L. Christine. After completion of his sentence, Price will serve three additional years of supervised release. There is no parole in the federal system.

Price was a passenger in a vehicle stopped for speeding in January 2017. While a Savannah police officer spoke to the driver outside the vehicle, Price attempted to drive away. When Price refused to stop, the officer used a Taser to subdue him. A firearm discovered during a search of the vehicle was determined to have been stolen, and Price, a convicted felon, admitted he had purchased the weapon.

Price has a criminal history dating back more than 15 years, including a previous traffic stop involving a stolen firearm, participating in a prison riot, and drug convictions.

“Working with law enforcement and other prosecutors through the U.S. Justice Department’s Project Safe Neighborhood’s program, our office will continue to remove violent felons from our community,” said Bobby L. Christine, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia. “Career criminals who carry guns are a threat to the safety of our neighborhoods, and they will get hard time in federal prison.”

The Savannah Police Department conducted the traffic stop and subsequent investigation. Assistant United States Attorneys Greg Gilluly, Tania D. Groover, and Matt Josephson represented the United States in the prosecution.

For any questions, please contact Barry Paschal at the United States Attorney’s Office at (912) 652-4422.