Ocala, Florida - Senior U.S. District Judge Wm. Terrell Hodges today sentenced Christian Labrent Moore (31, Ocala) to 17 years and 6 months in federal prison for possession of a firearm and ammunition affecting commerce by a convicted felon. Moore pleaded guilty on June 18, 2013.
According to court documents, on March 20, 2013, deputies from the Marion County Sheriff's Office responded to a report of illegal drug sales in the area of SW Second Street, in Ocala. Once there, the deputies observed Moore sitting on the front porch of a residence holding a clear baggie of marijuana and cocaine. As the deputies approached Moore, they saw him remove a loaded firearm from his pocket and toss it into a trash can. Moore spontaneously told the deputies that he had just traded drugs for the firearm and that he had just been released from prison. A subsequent records check confirmed that Moore had been released from the Florida Department of Corrections on Jan. 15, 2013, where he had been serving time for drug distribution. Moreover, Moore's prior record of drug and violent crimes made him eligible for an enhanced sentence in federal court as an Armed Career Criminal.
This case was investigated by the Marion County Sheriff's Office and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF). It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Robert E. Bodnar, Jr.
This is another case prosecuted as a part of the Department of Justice’s “Project Safe Neighborhoods" program - a nationwide, gun-violence reduction strategy. Acting United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III, along with Julie Leon, Special Agent in Charge, ATF, is coordinating the Project Safe Neighborhoods effort here in the Middle District of Florida in cooperation with federal, state, and local law enforcement officials.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
