Jackson Man Pleads Guilty Under Project EJECT to Illegally Possessing a Firearm

Jackson, Miss. – Donte Porter, 33, of Jackson, pled guilty today before U.S. District Judge Henry T. Wingate to being a felon in possession of a firearm, announced U.S. Attorney Mike Hurst and Special Agent in Charge Dana Nichols with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

On March 20, 2018, the Clinton Police Department received a call regarding a black male brandishing a firearm and acting suspicious at the Auto Zone in Clinton. The man left the scene in a black Nissan Maxima before officers arrived. The officers found a vehicle matching the description and attempted a traffic stop, but the driver, later identified as Donte Porter, drove off headed towards Jackson. The officers chased Porter into Jackson, where the vehicle finally came to a stop. A search of the vehicle revealed a handgun in the center console. Porter has a 2008 conviction for house burglary in Hinds County.

Porter will be sentenced by Judge Wingate on July 2, 2019, at 9:30 a.m. and faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine, followed by a three year term of supervised release.

This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Clinton Police Department, and the Jackson Police Department. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Chris Wansley.

This case is part of Project EJECT, an initiative by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Mississippi under the U.S. Department of Justice’s Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN). EJECT is a holistic, multi-disciplinary approach to fighting and reducing violent crime through prosecution, prevention, re-entry and awareness. EJECT stands for "Empower Justice Expel Crime Together." PSN is bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. Former Attorney General Jeff Sessions reinvigorated PSN in 2017 as part of the Department’s renewed focus on targeting violent criminals, directing all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to work in partnership with federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement and the local community to develop effective, locally-based strategies to reduce violent crime.