Lake Charles man pleads guilty to illegal firearm possession following police chase

LAKE CHARLES, La. – United States Attorney David C. Joseph announced that a Lake Charles man pleaded guilty in federal court on Monday to illegally possessing a firearm after leading Lake Charles police officers on a vehicle pursuit that ended in a crash. 

Dane Darbonne, 29, pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Kathleen Kay to being a felon in possession of a firearm. According to the guilty plea, Darbonne purchased a Savage Model 110 caliber, 30-06 rifle from another individual on August 10, 2018.  The day after taking possession of the firearm, Darbonne led Lake Charles police in a vehicle pursuit.  Darbonne crashed the car during the pursuit and fled the scene.  Officers recovered the rifle from the vehicle Darbonne was driving.  Darbonne is a felon who was previously convicted for possession of a firearm in a firearm free zone, assault by drive-by-shooting, attempted manslaughter, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and possession of cocaine.  Under federal law, it is illegal for anyone who has been convicted of a felony to be in possession of a firearm or ammunition.

Darbonne faces up to 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a $250,000 fine.

The ATF and the Lake Charles Police Department conducted the investigation.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Dominic Rossetti is 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 lasting reductions in crime.