Jason R. Coody, U.S. Attorney | U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Florida
Vinson Tavaris Brown, a 33-year-old resident of Homestead, Florida, has been indicted by a federal grand jury on charges of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and illegal possession of a machine gun. The announcement was made by John P. Heekin, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.
Brown appeared before United States Magistrate Judge Martin A. Fitzpatrick for arraignment in Tallahassee on September 12, 2025. His trial is scheduled to begin on October 27, 2025, before United States District Judge Mark Walker.
If found guilty, Brown could face up to fifteen years in prison for possessing a firearm as a convicted felon and up to ten years for illegally possessing a machine gun.
The case is being investigated by the Tallahassee Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Assistant United States Attorney James A. McCain is prosecuting the case.
“An indictment is merely an allegation by a grand jury that a defendant has committed a violation of federal criminal law and is not evidence of guilt. All defendants are presumed innocent and entitled to a fair trial, during which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.”
This prosecution falls under Operation Take Back America (https://www.justice.gov/dag/media/1393746/dl?inline), an initiative designed to combat illegal immigration, eliminate cartels and transnational criminal organizations, and protect communities from violent crime. The operation consolidates resources from the Department of Justice’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).
As part of its Project Safe Neighborhood strategy, the U.S. Attorney’s Office encourages residents to lock their car doors at night to prevent burglaries from unlocked vehicles—a notable source of firearms for criminals in Northern Florida.
The United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Florida serves as one of 94 principal litigation offices under the direction of the Attorney General. Public court documents can be accessed through the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida website. Additional information about the office is available at http://www.justice.gov/usao/fln/index.html.
