KC Man Sentenced for Illegal Firearm

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A Kansas City, Mo., man who was arrested when he fell asleep in another person’s car was sentenced in federal court today for illegally possessing a firearm.

Christopher Chappell, 31, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Greg Kays to nine years in federal prison without parole.

On Nov. 16, 2021, Chappell pleaded guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm.

Chappell was arrested on June 1, 2019, when Kansas City police officers responded to a call from a woman who found Chappell, whom she didn’t know, asleep in her Honda CRV. Officers found Chappell asleep in the driver’s seat of the vehicle, which was parked on the street. Chappell, who appeared to be impaired, was wearing a gun holster with a Smith & Wesson 9mm semi-automatic pistol. When officers inspected the vehicle, they saw the steering column had been completely destroyed.

Under federal law, it is illegal for anyone who has been convicted of a felony to be in possession of any firearm or ammunition. Chappell has prior felony convictions for burglary, tampering with a motor vehicle, attempted aggravated assault on a law enforcement officer with a vehicle, and possession of a firearm by an unlawful user of a controlled substance.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Maureen Brackett and Matt Moeder. It was investigated by the Kansas City, Mo., Police Department.

Project Safe Neighborhoods

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts.  PSN 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.