Department of Justice
For Immediate Release
Meridian Man Pleads Guilty to Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon
Jackson, Miss. – A Meridian man pled guilty to possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, announced U.S. Attorney Darren J. LaMarca and Special Agent in Charge Kurt Thielhorn of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
According to court documents, Patrick Terrell Lewis, Jr., 30, was found in possession of a firearm, a 9 mm pistol, in his vehicle by officers of the Lauderdale County Sheriff’s Office on January 7, 2021. Lewis has two prior felony convictions and was on probation at the time of this incident.
Lewis plead guilty to a violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 922(g)(1) which criminalizes the possession of firearms by convicted felons. He is scheduled to be sentenced on February 15, 2023 and faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
The Lauderdale County Sheriff’s Office and the ATF are investigating the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles W. Kirkham is prosecuting the case.
This case is being prosecuted as part of the joint federal, state, and local Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Program, the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.