Department of Justice
U.S. Attorney’s Office
Western District of Louisiana
Thursday, Aug. 29, 2013
SHREVEPORT, La. - United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced today that Larry Robert Baker, 50, of Maud, Texas, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Tom Stagg to possessing a firearm after being convicted and serving time for a murder in Texas and other felonies.
According to evidence presented at the guilty plea, the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) conducted an operation Jan. 11, 2013 to catch night hunters who were shooting after dark from the roads in north Caddo Parish. That night, LDWF agents observed Baker shooting from a car at a deer decoy agents had set up. He was arrested, and a.22 caliber revolver was found in the car along with a box of.22 caliber ammunition. Upon further investigation, agents found that Baker had been recently released from prison after serving 20 years for a Texas murder conviction, was driving under suspension, and traveling with open containers of alcohol. Baker was found guilty of murder on August 5, 1993 in the 54th District Court of McLennan County, Texas. Baker also has prior burglary and property theft convictions. Baker bought the firearm from an individual who did not know Baker was a convicted felon.
Baker faces up to 10 years in prison, a $250,000 fine, and three years of supervised release. A sentencing date of December 5, 2013 was set.
The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) and the ATF conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert W. Gillespie Jr. is prosecuting the case as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods. Project Safe Neighborhoods is a nationwide program started in 2001 designed to reduce violence by aggressively enforcing existing federal firearms laws.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
