Benton Harbor Armed Felon, Prosecuted Under Summer Gun Violence Program, Sentenced To 88 Months In Federal Prison

<_w3a_sdt docpart="D12125FBA7704324A773E65713530B7F" dropdown="t" id="-1351956640" sdttag="City" title="City"><_w3a_listitem listvalue="Choose an item."><_w3a_listitem datavalue="GRAND RAPIDS" listvalue="GRAND RAPIDS"><_w3a_listitem datavalue="MARQUETTE" listvalue="MARQUETTE"> GRAND RAPIDS, MICHIGAN - U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Michigan Mark Totten today announced that Darell William Craft, Jr., 30, of Benton Harbor, was sentenced to 88 months in federal prison for possessing a stolen firearm with a high-capacity magazine as a convicted felon, while on probation for a prior conviction. At sentencing, U.S. District Court Judge Paul Maloney imposed a sentence above the advisory sentencing range, adding that Craft presented "a major risk to the law-abiding public."

<_w3a_sdt docpart="D12125FBA7704324A773E65713530B7F" dropdown="t" id="-1351956640" sdttag="City" title="City"> Craft was charged last October under Safe Summer 2023, a gun-violence enforcement program under which the U.S. Attorney's Office committed to prosecute all firearms offenders who possess crime guns (that is, guns previously fired in the commission of a crime).

<_w3a_sdt docpart="D12125FBA7704324A773E65713530B7F" dropdown="t" id="-1351956640" sdttag="City" title="City"> "Craft exhibited a stunning disregard for human life, and today's sentence reflects the seriousness of his crimes," said U.S. Attorney Mark Totten. "No level of violence is acceptable. The people of Benton Harbor, like people in every community across Michigan, deserve the right to walk their streets, relax in their homes, and carry out their lives without the fear of shots fired. We will continue to focus our efforts on people like Darell Craft who are driving violence in their communities."

<_w3a_sdt docpart="D12125FBA7704324A773E65713530B7F" dropdown="t" id="-1351956640" sdttag="City" title="City"> In July 2023, following a series of apparently related shootings, police approached a parked car with Craft and his girlfriend inside. They searched it and found a loaded pistol with a high-capacity magazine. Police also searched Craft's girlfriend's phone and found videos of Craft holding and pointing the pistol. Ballistics testing showed the pistol had been used in three recent shootings.

<_w3a_sdt docpart="D12125FBA7704324A773E65713530B7F" dropdown="t" id="-1351956640" sdttag="City" title="City"> U.S. Attorney Mark Totten announced the Safe Summer 2024 program on May 23, 2024 in a press release and press conferences in Benton Harbor, Kalamazoo, Lansing, and Grand Rapids. Under this program, the U.S. Attorney's Office will prosecute all cases that satisfy two criteria. First, the case must involve a federal firearms offense. The two most common offenses are felon in possession, which prohibits previously convicted felons from possessing a gun, and possession of a machine gun, which generally prohibits persons from possessing fully automatic guns. Second, the case must involve a crime gun, which is any gun previously fired in the commission of a crime. These criteria focus federal efforts on the few individuals driving gun violence in their communities.

<_w3a_sdt docpart="D12125FBA7704324A773E65713530B7F" dropdown="t" id="-1351956640" sdttag="City" title="City"> Gun violence is an acute problem across the United States. In 2021, for the first time ever, firearm-related injuries became the leading cause of death for American children, ages birth to 19, according to the New England Journal of Medicine (see also here). According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the U.S. firearm homicide rate in 2021 was the highest documented since 1993. While the numbers have declined since 2021, they remain high.

<_w3a_sdt docpart="D12125FBA7704324A773E65713530B7F" dropdown="t" id="-1351956640" sdttag="City" title="City"> Moreover, while gun violence has the potential to impact everyone, recent studies show that gun violence has a disparate impact on people of color. A study in the Journal of the American Medical Association shows that the disparity in shooting injuries among children before and after the pandemic in four major cities approximately tripled as between white children and children of color (Black, Hispanic, Asian).

<_w3a_sdt docpart="D12125FBA7704324A773E65713530B7F" dropdown="t" id="-1351956640" sdttag="City" title="City"> This case was investigated by ATF, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Michigan State Police, the Benton Township Police Department, and the Benton Harbor Department of Public Safety. It was prosecuted by Patrick Castle, Assistant U.S. Attorney, working with Victoria Pedri, 2L student at the University of Michigan Law School.

<_w3a_sdt docpart="D12125FBA7704324A773E65713530B7F" dropdown="t" id="-1351956640" sdttag="City" title="City"> 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 gun violence and other violent crime, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department 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. For more information about Project Safe Neighborhoods, please visit Justice.gov/PSN.

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