Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives

LEXINGTON, Ky. - A Lexington man, Jody Shipman, 29, was sentenced in federal court on Thursday, to 165 months in prison, by Chief U.S. District Judge Danny Reeves, for carjacking, with the intent to inflict serious bodily harm or death, on two occasions.

Shipman pleaded guilty to two, separate carjackings, in January and February 2019.  According to his plea agreement, in January 2019, Shipman approached a Lexington woman at her apartment, demanded her vehicle, phone, and wallet, and threatened her with force. He later used her ATM card at a gas station. Then, in February 2019, Shipman approached a second female victim, at Lexington’s St. Joseph Hospital, forcing her inside her vehicle and driving her to an ATM machine, to withdraw money from her account.

Under federal law, Shipman must serve 85 percent of his prison sentence. Following his release, he will be under the supervision of the U.S. Probation Office for three years.

Robert M. Duncan, Jr., United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky; Shawn Morrow, Special Agent in Charge, ATF Louisville Field Division; and Lawrence Weathers, Chief, Lexington Police Department, jointly announced the sentence.

The investigation was conducted by the Lexington Police Department and ATF. The United States was represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Cynthia T. Rieker.

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 make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. The PSN program was reinvigorated as part of the Department’s renewed focus on targeting violent criminals, directing all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to work in partnership with federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement and the local community to develop effective, locally-based strategies to reduce violent crime.

This case is also part of Project Guardian, the Department of Justice’s signature initiative to reduce gun violence and enforce federal firearms laws. Initiated by the Attorney General in the fall of 2019, Project Guardian draws upon the Department’s past successful programs to reduce gun violence; enhances coordination of federal, state, local, and tribal authorities in investigating and prosecuting gun crimes; improves information-sharing by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives when a prohibited individual attempts to purchase a firearm and is denied by the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), to include taking appropriate actions when a prospective purchaser is denied by the NICS for mental health reasons; and ensures that federal resources are directed at the criminals posing the greatest threat to our communities. Click here for more information about Project Guardian.

The year 2020 marks the 150th anniversary of the Department of Justice.  Learn more about the history of our agency at www.Justice.gov/Celebrating150Years.

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