Department of Justice
For Immediate Release
Memphis Man Convicted of Felony Possession of a Firearm
Memphis, TN – A jury has convicted a Memphis man of possessing a firearm while a convicted felon and possessing a firearm while on school property. Lawrence J. Laurenzi, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Tennessee, announced the conviction today.
According to information presented at trial, on October 3o, 2014, officers with the Memphis Police Department responded to a report of an armed suspect at Ross Elementary School, 4890 Ross Road. Upon arrival, officers saw Charles Tigner of Memphis, Tennessee, who was combative and engaged officers in a fight resulting in the deployment of a chemical agent.
Officers pursued Tigner from the halls of Ross Elementary School to 6946 Boothbay, where he was apprehended. A Ruger 9 mm was recovered on school property near the area of the original struggle.
According to the affidavit of complaint, the suspect had an outstanding warrant for domestic violence charges.
For the two counts, the maximum penalty is 15 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Sentencing is set for May 4, 2017, before the Honorable U.S. District Judge John T. Fowlkes Jr.
The case was investigated by the Memphis Police Department’s Project Safe Neighborhoods Task Force. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Dean DeCandia and Bayonle Osundare prosecuted this case on the government’s behalf.