DOJ Seal

Department of Justice

U.S. Attorney's Office
District of Idaho

For Immediate Release

Thursday, February 8, 2018
Bart M. Davis
, United States Attorney
Contact: Barbara Layman

Federal Jury Convicts California Man for Unlawful Possession of a Firearm

BOISE – On Monday a federal jury convicted Eric Courtney Hunter, 38, of Victorville, California, of two counts of felon in possession of a firearm, U.S. Attorney Bart M. Davis announced. Trial started last Wednesday, January 31, 2018, and lasted until Monday, February 5, 2018.

According to evidence presented at trial, on December 6, 2016, Twin Falls police officers responded to a 911 call reporting shots fired at a Twin Falls residence. Officers found evidence that a gun had been fired, including a hole in the window and shotgun shells on the ground.

Witnesses at trial confirmed it was Hunter who fired the shotgun. A month later on January 6, 2017, a woman reported to Twin Falls police that Hunter stole her BMW and $27,000. When police found the BMW, Hunter was driving the vehicle and had $27,100 in his pocket. During a search of the car, police found the shotgun and ammunition in Hunter’s suitcase. Hunter was prohibited from possessing firearms because he was convicted of felony crimes, including witness intimidation in Twin Falls County, Idaho on May 29, 2015.

Sentencing is scheduled for May 11, 2018, before Chief U.S. District Judge B. Lynn Winmill at the federal courthouse in Boise. The crime of felon in possession of a firearm is punishable by up to ten years in prison, a fine of $250,000, and three years of supervised release.

However, Hunter may receive a sentence of up to life in prison if three or more of his prior felony convictions qualify as crimes of violence under federal law.

The case was investigated by the Twin Falls Police Department; Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; and the Twin Falls County Sheriff’s Office.

###

Seattle Field Division