Jason R. Coody, U.S. Attorney | U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Florida
Earl Vincent Hudgins III, a 32-year-old resident of Pensacola, Florida, has been sentenced to three years in federal prison for possessing a firearm as a convicted felon. Following his prison term, Hudgins will serve three years of supervised release. The sentencing was announced by John P. Heekin, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.
U.S. Attorney Heekin stated: “Thanks to the outstanding work of the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office and our federal law enforcement partners, another dangerous felon was stopped before he could continue terrorizing our community with violence, and with this successful prosecution by my office he will be kept off our streets for several years. My office will continue fulfilling the promise made by President Donald J. Trump and Attorney General Pam Bondi when they launched Operation Take Back America to protect our communities from dangerous felons like this defendant.”
According to court records, Hudgins was stopped on February 16, 2025, for a traffic violation. During the stop, authorities found an AR-style firearm loaded with 15 rounds of .300-caliber ammunition in his vehicle. As a convicted felon, Hudgins was not allowed to possess firearms or ammunition. Investigators later discovered multiple social media posts showing Hudgins holding the same firearm found during the traffic stop. He also posted a video at the time of the incident with the caption “Bout to go to jail.”
The investigation was conducted jointly by the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives. Assistant United States Attorney Christopher C. Patterson prosecuted the case.
This prosecution is part of Operation Take Back America, which uses resources from the Department of Justice to address illegal immigration and target violent crime as well as drug and human trafficking organizations.
The United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Florida is one of 94 offices serving under direction from the Attorney General as principal litigators nationwide. Additional information about public court documents can be found on the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida website and more details about this office are available at https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndfl.
