DALLAS, Texas — A federal jury has handed down a guilty verdict against Alvin Christopher Penn, 28, for breaking free from federal custody and being in possession of a firearm as a convicted felon.
According to the evidence presented during the six-day trial, Penn was serving a sentence for a federal conviction for being a felon in possession of a firearm at a residential reentry center in Hutchins, Texas. On July 6, 2017, he was allowed to leave the center to work in Fort Worth, but instead, he went to an apartment complex in Grand Prairie.
There, Penn accepted a loaded firearm from a family member and engaged in a shootout with two men, sparking a broader exchange of gunfire throughout the complex. Penn took the firearm with him as he drove away from the scene.
A Grand Prairie police officer spotted Penn’s vehicle, which matched the description of the suspected shooter’s vehicle, and began pursuing him. Penn attempted to evade the officer, leading to a high-speed chase through a residential neighborhood with speeds reaching 70-80 miles per hour.
Penn lost control of the vehicle, crashed into a building, and brandished the firearm at a bystander before throwing it over a fence and fleeing from police. He was eventually apprehended approximately a month later.
Penn is scheduled to be sentenced on December 3, 2018, facing a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison for the felon-in-possession charge and five years for the escape charge.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the U.S. Marshals Service, and the Grand Prairie Police Department investigated the case, with Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jamie L. Hoxie and Marcus Busch handling the prosecution.
Key Facts
- State: Texas
- Category: Violent Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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