Project Ceasefire
KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Tammy Dickinson, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced that a Kansas City, Mo., man was sentenced in federal court today for illegally possessing firearms.
Christopher J. Harris, 31, of Kansas City, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Howard F. Sachs to 15 years in federal prison without parole. Harris was sentenced as an armed career criminal due to his prior felony convictions.
On Feb. 12, 2014, Harris pleaded guilty to being a felon in possession of firearms. Harris admitted that he was in possession of a Jennings.22-caliber pistol and a Smith & Wesson.38-caliber revolver on July 17, 2013.
Law enforcement officers found the loaded firearms (along with two more loaded Smith & Wesson.38-caliber revolvers and 19 baggies of cocaine and marijuana) at Harris’s residence while executing a search warrant as part of a drug-trafficking investigation.
Under federal law, it is illegal for anyone who has been convicted of a felony to be in possession of any firearm or ammunition. Harris has two prior felony convictions for distributing a controlled substance and a prior felony conviction for assault.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jess Michaelsen. It was investigated by the Kansas City, Mo., Police Department.
Project Ceasefire
Project Ceasefire, launched in October 1999, is a cooperative initiative by federal and local law enforcement and the Kansas City Crime Commission that targets for federal prosecution persons who unlawfully use or possess firearms.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
