Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – Tammy Dickinson, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced that a Lebanon, Mo., man was convicted in federal court today for illegally possessing a firearm and attempting to acquire a firearm.

James Roy Jacoby, 31, of Lebanon, was found guilty of both counts of a May 8, 2011, federal indictment that charges him with being a felon in possession of a firearm and with making false statements in an attempt to acquire a firearm.

On Jan. 15, 2013, Jacoby took out a $50 pawn broker loan at Rawhide Gun and Pawn, 321 W. Commercial, in Lebanon. Jacoby gave a Remington 16-gauge shotgun as collateral. The shotgun belonged to Jacoby’s mother.

On Feb. 1, 2013, Jacoby returned to Rawhide Gun and Pawn to redeem his pawn ticket and retrieve the shotgun. Jacoby completed ATF Form 4473 (Firearms Transaction Record Part I – Over-the-Counter). On the form, Jacoby falsely answered “No” to the question about whether he had a felony conviction: “Have you ever been convicted in any court of a felony, or any other crime, for which the judge could have imprisoned you for more than one year, even if you received a shorter sentence including probation?”

After Jacoby paid $60 to a store employee to repay the loan, the employee informed Jacoby that the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) showed that he was a felon, and that his request for the return of the shotgun was being denied. The employee also refused to return Jacoby’s loan payment, and said the store would not release the shotgun to another person.

Jacoby then turned over a glass display case, and the employee ordered him to leave the pawn shop. Jacoby exited the shop and got into his car. Jacoby twice rammed the store with his car, striking the employee, a store patron, and another vehicle. Jacoby’s car became disabled, and he fled on foot.

Jacoby was subsequently subdued by Lebanon police officers after a struggle in which he struck an officer. Jacoby was charged in state court with assault, armed criminal action and property damage, and held on a $100,000 bond.

It is illegal for anyone who has been convicted of a felony to be in possession of any firearm or ammunition. Jacoby has two prior felony convictions for assault and prior felony convictions for assaulting a law enforcement officer and resisting arrest.

Under federal statutes, Jacoby is subject to a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in federal prison without parole. Jacoby will be sentenced as a career criminal due to his prior felony convictions. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.

Following the presentation of evidence, the jury in the U.S. District Court in Kansas City, Mo., deliberated for about an hour before returning the guilty verdict to U.S. District Judge Beth Phillips, ending a trial that began Monday, May 12, 2014.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Gary Milligan. It was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Lebanon, Mo., Police Department.

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This news release, as well as additional information about the office of the United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, is available on-line at

http://www.justice.gov/usao/mow/index.html

Twitter: http://www.Twitter.com/USAO_WDMO

Facebook: http://www.Facebook.com/USAOMOW

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