Seven Years in Prison for a 40 Year Old Mistake

A Vietnam Veteran awarded the Silver Star is being sent to Federal prison for buying an M-14 like the one he carried in the Army.
The raid and arrest on Pick’s Plano home came two weeks after his wife of 40 years died of cancer. They were using marijuana, which authorities found and added another criminal charge.

Friends of the vet showed up to support him after he pleaded guilty in a Plano federal courtroom and was sentenced to 87 months in prison by a judge.

“He’s had it all these years never robbed a bank or done anything with it,” said Shackelford. “Somebody that made one mistake and now 50 years later, he’s paying a really big price for it.”
Good candidate for a Presidential pardon, that.

10 comments:

Sam L. said...

HOW long ago did he buy it?

Grim said...

At a gun show in the 80s. But his possession of it was current at the time of the ATF raid.

raven said...

The comments are ... interesting. Especially the one from a supposed neighbor.

Grim said...

I didn't read the comments. Internet comments are usually dangerous nonsense, present company excepted. Maybe it's real, and maybe it's not.

douglas said...

In the article it mentions sexual abuse of his daughter.
I'm gonna refrain from any support of this guy until I can see what was presented in court.

Tom said...

There's some troubling behavior in the article besides the accusation of sexual abuse. Brandishing pistols at people in parking lots, threatening the judge, stuff we shouldn't put up with if it's true. Also, I didn't think the M-14 was automatic. With the serial number filed off, I wonder if it was stolen from the military.

Grim said...

Was he on trial for any of that? Was any of it proven to a jury? The US attorney admits that the sentence is too heavy for the charge that they could have convicted this 70 year old decorated veteran. So now I have you on a technicality, so you must plead guilty to everything that the state would like to accuse you of doing?

The only matter actually before the court was this firearm. Everything else the state should have to charge and prove separately.

Tom: I am pretty sure the M-14 was an automatic rifle. That was the reason it replaced the Garand, unless I misremember. But it was before my time, so I could be wrong.

Grim said...

One thing that I hope conservatives get out of this administration is a heightened distrust for authority. How many people have been forced to plead to things they didn’t do by the special counsel? Flynn alone, or others too? The Kavanaugh experience alone should have taught us that authority figures raising ‘disturbing’ charges proves nothing.

douglas said...

Like I said, I'd have to see more in depth evidence, and there's virtually no question he was guilty of this charge (given the hard evidence). so coercing a plea deal seems unlikely.

Tom said...

Well, Wikipedia agrees that the M-14 was an automatic rifle. So much for my memory.

It's true he wasn't on trial for any of those things, but my point was to agree with douglas that we need to know more. News reports rarely get all of the relevant facts, and those they do get are often in error.

So, 87 months for illegal possession of an automatic weapon plus drug charges, that sounds normal in the US, and Pick and his lawyer agreed to it.

I wish the reporter had researched the actual charges filed, the pleas, etc.