Springfield Felon Jamel Bolden Sentenced for Gun Threats

BOSTON – The grim narrative of a Springfield man’s descent into violence reached its conclusion as Jamel Bolden, 22, was today sentenced to 78 months in federal prison for his heinous act of threatening his parents with a firearm.

Before the judge’s gavel fell, Bolden had already pleaded guilty to conspiring to illegally possess a firearm and ammunition, as well as conspiring to distribute cocaine. The court’s decision came after Bolden’s latest transgression on June 3, 2013, when he brandished a silver long-barreled revolver during a heated domestic dispute with his mother and stepfather.

With threats of lethal force hanging in the air, Bolden, who had been on probation for three counts of armed robbery, fled from police and concealed the firearm at a local elementary school. The audacity of his actions didn’t go unnoticed; Bolden has now agreed to plead guilty to assault with a dangerous weapon in Hampden Superior Court.

United States Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz led the charge against Bolden, alongside Special Agent in Charge Daniel J. Kumor of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), and Springfield Police Commissioner John Barbieri. Assistant U.S. Attorney Steven H. Breslow prosecuted the case for Ortiz’s Springfield Branch Office.

Bolden’s sentence sends a stern message to those who would use firearms as tools of terror in their lives or in the lives of others. His story is a stark reminder of the consequences that follow when one crosses the line from mere troublemaking to outright criminality.