Little Rock Man Convicted of Illegally Possessing Firearms Multiple Times Will Spend 20 Years In Prison

Press Release

LITTLE ROCK-A Little Rock man federally convicted twice for illegal gun possession received a 15-year prison sentence for his latest crime. Combined with his previous federal sentence, Juantay Jackson, 37, will spend 20 years in federal prison following the ruling handed down Thursday by United States District Court Chief Judge Kristine G. Baker.

A federal grand jury indicted Jackson on May 3, 2023, on three charges, including being a felon in possession of a firearm, possessing with intent to distribute methamphetamine, and possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug-trafficking crime, following an arrest on September 8, 2022. He pleaded guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm on October 19, 2023.

Jackson had been previously indicted on identical charges on March 6, 2018, stemming for a separate incident that occurred in 2017 when Jackson also had a gun and drugs in his vehicle. After pleading guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm in that case, Jackson was scheduled to be sentenced on May 9, 2019. However, Jackson failed to appear for that hearing and evaded police until his arrest on September 8, 2022, when he again had a gun and drugs in his vehicle. Ultimately, Jackson received a 10-year sentence for his 2017 crime.

On Thursday, Judge Baker sentenced Jackson to 15 years in federal prison for his 2022 crime, plus three years of supervised release. From that 15-year sentence, 10 years are to be run consecutive to the 10 years Jackson received in his previous case, resulting in 20 years of total imprisonment. There is no parole in the federal system.

In Jackson's most recent case, an investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) revealed that on September 8, 2022, North Little Rock police officers attempted to stop on a vehicle driven by Jackson, however Jackson fled from officers in the vehicle while driving at speeds in excess of 65 mph in a 30-mph zone before ultimately crashing into a light pole. Jackson then fled on foot but was apprehended. Officers located two bags of pills which contained methamphetamine in Jackson's pocket. Officers also searched Jackson's vehicle and found a loaded handgun in the driver's side floorboard, additional ammunition, and a large-capacity magazine. Officers also located a backpack containing marijuana in the rear seat.

This case was investigated by the ATF with assistance from the North Little Rock Police Department. This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Shelby Shelton.

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Additional information about the office of the

United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Arkansas, is available online at

https://www.justice.gov/edar

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Updated November 22, 2024