Tennessee Man Sentenced to Over 3 Years in Federal Prison for Illegal Possession of Firearm in Hopkinsville

Bowling Green, KY – A Ripley, Tennessee, man was sentenced to 3 years and 1 month in federal prison for possession of a firearm by a convicted felon in Hopkinsville.

U.S. Attorney Michael A. Bennett of the Western District of Kentucky, Special Agent in Charge R. Shawn Morrow of the ATF Louisville Field Division, and Chief Jason Newby of the Hopkinsville Police Department made the announcement.

According to court documents, Nicholas Bryant Starks, 44, was sentenced to 37 months in federal prison, followed by 3 years of supervised release, for possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.   On October 24, 2021, in Hopkinsville, Kentucky, Starks possessed a Taurus, model PT 738, .380 caliber semiautomatic pistol. 

Starks was prohibited from possessing a firearm due to a 2002 felony conviction for Armed Bank Robbery out of the Western District of Tennessee at Memphis. 

There is no parole in the federal system.

The case was investigated by the ATF Bowling Green Field Office and the Hopkinsville Police Department. 

Assistant U.S. Attorney Seth Hancock, Chief of the U.S. Attorney’s Paducah Branch Office, prosecuted the case.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.

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