Court Sentences Mobile Woman to 2 Years Imprisonment for Possessing a Firearm as a Convicted Felon

MOBILE, AL - On September 20, 2024, United States District Court Judge Kristi K. DuBose sentenced Elizabeth Elaine Pemberton to 24 months imprisonment for Possession of a Firearm as a Convicted Felon.

Documents filed with the Court established that on August 5, 2022, the Bayou La Batre Police Department (BLBPD) was assisting the Mobile Police Department (MPD) in the arrest of two individuals in their area that had active felony warrants, to include Pemberton.

BLBPD officers attempted to stop a vehicle in which Pemberton was a passenger. This resulted in a high-speed chase which ended when the vehicle being pursued attempted to make a sharp right turn and wrecked into a ditch. Officers later located a Taurus 9mm handgun in the vehicle near where Pemberton was seated. Pemberton admitted that she was in possession of the weapon. The weapon was determined to be stolen. Pemberton also had a small amount of methamphetamine in her possession. Pemberton had previously been convicted of the following felony offenses: Burglary Third Degree, on or about July 21, 2014; Felony Obstruction of Justice, on or about July 21, 2014; and Possession of a Controlled Substance, on or about July 21, 2014. All felony convictions were prosecuted in the Circuit Court of Mobile County. The Taurus handgun was not manufactured in the state of Alabama and thus affected interstate commerce by its transportation into the state of Alabama.

The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms, the City of Mobile Police Department and the City of Bayou La Batre Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney George F. May.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the U.S. Department of Justice launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.