Gulfport, Mississippi - A Gulfport man was sentenced to 24 months in prison for being an unlawful user of a controlled substance in possession of a firearm, announced U.S. Attorney Darren J. LaMarca and Brad L. Byerley, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration.
According to court documents and proceedings, on July 27, 2021, law enforcement officers observed what they believed to be a hand-to-hand drug transaction between an individual and occupants of a car parked in the street. Officers detained the occupants of the vehicle and the individual who approached the vehicle. Michael Hamilton, 27, was the driver of the vehicle.
Hamilton admitted to officers that he was in possession of pain pills and relinquished 14 dosage units of Oxycodone to the officers. Hamilton did not have a prescription for the medication. Hamilton was also in possession of a 9mm firearm, which was loaded with 11 rounds of ammunition. Hamilton was taken into custody. Post-Miranda, he admitted to being a habitual user of prescription pain medication and marijuana.
Hamilton pled guilty on Oct. 20, 2021 to being an unlawful user of a controlled substance in possession of a firearm.
The DEA and Gulfport Police Department investigated the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Buckner prosecuted 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.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
