Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – An Independence, Mo., man who was inebriated when he fired a pistol from his apartment patio pleaded guilty in federal court today to possessing a stolen firearm.

Reggie L. Teagues, 42, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Gary A. Fenner to one count of possessing a stolen firearm.

By pleading guilty today, Teagues admitted that he possessed a Kel-Tec 9mm semi-automatic pistol on Nov. 12, 2020. Independence police officers were called to his residence at approximately 4:05 p.m. that day in response to a neighbor’s 911 report of shots fired. The neighbor heard three gunshots, which he originally thought were fireworks. When he went out to his patio to investigate, he saw Teagues holding a handgun.

When officers arrived, Teagues was slumped over on the living room floor in his apartment, near the sliding glass door leading to the patio. Teagues told officers he had consumed approximately one pint of tequila since noon that day, as well as using PCP. Teagues had an injury to his elbow, which he apparently received when he fell into the bedroom window while on the patio. Officers found two spent shell casings on the patio and another spent shell casing on the floor beside Teagues.

Teagues’s girlfriend told officers the firearm belonged to her and that she had it secured in her bedroom closet on a shelf where Teagues had taken it without permission. She had rushed home after getting a frantic phone call from her daughter. She saw the firearm lying on the kitchen table, put it in her purse, and was attempting to get Teagues into the bedroom when officers arrived.

Under the terms of today’s plea agreement, the government and Teagues agree to a sentence of 10 years in federal prison without parole. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.

This case is being prosecuted by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Brandon Gibson, who is a cross-designated prosecutor from the Missouri Attorney General’s office as part of the Safer Streets Initiative to combat violent crime. It was investigated by the Independence, Mo., Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

Project Safe Neighborhoods

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.