District Man Sentenced in Possessing an AR-Style Pistol and Ammunition on U.S. Capitol Grounds

WASHINGTON - Ahmir Lavon Merrell, 22, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to 24 months in prison for possessing an AR-style pistol and 73 rounds of ammunition on Capitol grounds in November 2023. The sentence was announced by U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves, and Chief J. Thomas Manger of the U.S. Capitol Police.

Merrell pleaded guilty on April 23, 2024, to one count of illegal receipt of a firearm by a person under indictment. In addition to the prison sentence, U.S. District Court Judge Christopher R. Cooper today ordered Merrell to serve three years of supervised release.

According to court documents, on November 7, 2023, at about 12:40 p.m., a U.S. Capitol Police officer, patrolling the Upper Senate Park between Union Station and the U.S. Capitol, was approached by a citizen who stated that while walking through Lower Senate Park he observed someone holding an object that appeared to be a firearm.

Multiple officers responded to the scene and observed Merrell, holding an object that appeared to be firearm equipped with a magazine. Officers ordered Merrell to drop the firearm. Merrell refused and replied with words to the effect of "[f]or you to get this gun from me, you are going to have to kill me."

One of the responding officers deployed a taser. Merrell fell to the ground and dropped the firearm. Merrell was taken into custody without further incident. Officers recovered a Diamondback Arms AR-Style pistol loaded with one .223 caliber round in the chamber and equipped with a 30-round high-capacity ammunition feeding device containing 26 rounds as depicted in Figure 1.

Figure 1, Diamondback Arms AR-Style Pistol Possessed by The Defendant

This case was investigated by the U.S. Capitol Police. It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Alexander Schneider with valuable help from former Assistant U.S. Attorney Mackenzie Harmon.