Lafayette man pleads guilty to possessing a pistol

LAFAYETTE, La. – United States Attorney David C. Joseph announced that Jarius T. Carson, 26, of Lafayette, pleaded guilty Monday before U.S. District Judge Robert Summerhays for illegally possessing a loaded semi-automatic pistol.

According to the guilty plea, a Lafayette Parish Sheriff’s deputy encountered Carson on June 6, 2018 in the parking lot of a Scott, Louisiana, apartment complex.  When the deputy approached, Carson fled.  While in pursuit, the deputy saw Carson run towards a vehicle and place an object in the vehicle’s wheel well.  The deputy caught up with Carson and arrested him.  Carson acknowledged that the loaded Cobra .380-caliber semi-automatic pistol found in the wheel well of the car belonged to him.

Carson was previously convicted of aggravated assault with a firearm and illegal carrying of a firearm in state court on August 17, 2010.  Under federal law, a felon is not allowed to possess firearms and ammunition.

Carson faces up to 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a $250,000 fine. Summerhays set the sentencing date for August 23, 2019.

The ATF and Lafayette Parish Sheriff’s Office conducted the investigation.  Assistant U.S. Attorneys Danny Siefker and Dominic Rossetti are prosecuting the case.

Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts.  Project Safe Neighborhoods is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for reductions in crime.