Timothy M. O’Shea, United States Attorney for the Western District of Wisconsin, announced the sentencing of Curtis White III, a 21-year-old resident of Sun Prairie, Wisconsin. Chief U.S. District Judge James D. Peterson sentenced White to four years in federal prison for possessing a firearm as a convicted felon. White had pleaded guilty to the charge on February 13, 2025.
The investigation began on September 30, 2024, when police in Fitchburg received a call reporting that White was in possession of a gun. Officers located White a few blocks from the caller's apartment complex. Following his arrest, White admitted to possessing a firearm near the caller's apartment, stating his fingerprints would be found on it. However, he misled the officers by claiming he disposed of the gun near Williamsburg Way and Whitney Way.
On October 1, 2024, law enforcement reviewed White's calls from jail and heard him giving directions to locate the firearm. Acting on this information, officers discovered a loaded black Sarsilmaz 9mm handgun wrapped in a black sweatshirt in the basement stairwell of a Fitchburg apartment building.
White's criminal history includes eight felony convictions in Dane County, involving charges like burglary and bail jumping. During the sentencing hearing, Judge Peterson remarked on White being a "very dangerous person" with an "unrelenting pattern" of criminal behavior. He emphasized that White's dishonesty about the firearm's location and recent assaults on fellow inmates in jail worsened his legal situation. Consequently, Judge Peterson determined a four-year prison sentence was justified to safeguard the public from White's violent behavior.
The case was part of Project Safe Neighborhoods, a U.S. Justice Department program aimed at reducing violent crime through collaboration between state and federal prosecutors and law enforcement. This initiative focuses on addressing gun crime, particularly felons possessing firearms illegally, and violent or drug-related crimes involving firearms.
The investigation was conducted by the Fitchburg Police Department with support from the ATF Madison Crime Gun Task Force. Assistant U.S. Attorney Aaron Wegner prosecuted the case.
