A Calhoun County resident has been sentenced to over three years in federal prison for illegally possessing a machinegun, according to an announcement from U.S. Attorney Prim F. Escalona.
Austin Heath Church, 38, of Anniston, Alabama, received a sentence of 39 months from United States District Judge Corey L. Maze. Church had pleaded guilty in September 2025 to two counts of possession of a machine gun.
The plea agreement states that on February 8, 2025, Jacksonville Police officers were investigating a reported violation of a Protection from Abuse Order in Jacksonville, Alabama. Officers found Church in a business parking lot and approached him as he exited his vehicle. During their interaction, they noticed a magazine pouch on his hip containing three loaded Glock magazines. Officers also recovered a Glock 9mm pistol converted into a machinegun with a conversion device known as a “Glock switch” from Church’s waistband.
A search warrant executed on Church’s vehicle led to the discovery of seven additional firearms and another machinegun conversion device designed for an AR-type rifle (drop-in auto sear).
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and the Jacksonville Police Department investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brittney L. Plyler prosecuted the matter.
