Robert J. "Bob" Troester U.S. Attorney | U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Oklahoma
Izavia Marquis Smith, 29, of Oklahoma City, was sentenced on April 20 to serve 144 months in federal prison for illegally possessing a firearm after a previous felony conviction, according to an announcement by U.S. Attorney Robert J. Troester.
Smith was stopped by Oklahoma City Police Department officers on August 12, 2025, after he crossed multiple lanes of traffic without signaling. During the stop and subsequent search of his person and vehicle, officers found a small bag of cocaine, a handgun, and nine rounds of live ammunition. Smith was charged by a federal grand jury with being a felon in possession of a firearm on September 2, 2025. He pleaded guilty to the charge on October 22, 2025.
U.S. District Judge Jodi W. Dishman imposed the sentence and cited the need for deterrence and public protection as well as Smith’s violent criminal history as reasons for the decision. Public records show that Smith has prior felony convictions in Oklahoma County including second-degree burglary; two counts related to domestic abuse; assault and battery; malicious injury to property; first-degree burglary; two counts of felon in possession of a firearm; pointing a firearm at another person; and using a vehicle to facilitate discharging a weapon.
The case resulted from an investigation conducted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives alongside the Oklahoma City Police Department. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Laney Ellis prosecuted the case as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), which is funded through grants aimed at reducing violent crime within communities.
This prosecution is also part of Operation Take Back America (OTBA), described as an initiative using resources from the Department of Justice targeting illegal immigration and transnational criminal organizations while protecting communities from violent crime perpetrators. The Western District's implementation—Operation 922—prioritizes prosecution related to domestic violence.
The U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Oklahoma advances public safety through enforcement initiatives such as Project Safe Neighborhoods according to its official website. The office operates within the United States Department of Justice according to its official website and covers forty counties across western and central parts of Oklahoma according to its official website. It collaborates with other agencies on community safety programs like Project Safe Childhood according to its official website.
