Department of Justice

FORT WAYNE – Kenneth A. Hale, 30 years old, of Fort Wayne, Indiana, was sentenced by United States District Court Judge Holly A. Brady after pleading guilty to two counts of being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm and possession of methamphetamine, announced United States Attorney Clifford D. Johnson.

Hale was sentenced to 120 months in prison to be followed by 2 years of supervised release.

According to documents in the case, Hale encountered police on two separate incidents. In April 2021, a 911 call was placed regarding a domestic dispute. When officers arrived, Hale ran and resisted law enforcement when a firearm fell from his waist. Hale was arrested and charged in State Court, posted bond and was released. Thereafter, in July 2021, Hale was observed chasing a SUV and shooting at it. At the time of his state arrest on this second incident, a firearm and methamphetamine were recovered from his vehicle. Hale was prohibited from possessing a firearm due to a 2014 felony conviction for Domestic Battery and a 2011 felony Aiding Attempted Burglary conviction.

This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, with the assistance of the Fort Wayne Police Department and the New Haven Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Stacey R. Speith.

This case was 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.