Journey Austin, Firearm Charge, South Dakota 2020

A Rapid City woman has been sentenced to 14 months in federal prison for her role in a firearm case.

Journey Austin, 24, was sentenced on July 20, 2020 by Chief Judge Roberto A. Lange, U.S. District Court, following her guilty plea to possession of a firearm by a prohibited person.

Austin was indicted by a federal grand jury on March 9, 2020, and her conviction stemmed from an incident that occurred on November 12, 2019, during a routine traffic stop.

Law enforcement found and seized firearms and ammunition from the car, which Austin admitted she was in possession of, despite being a user and addict of methamphetamine.

Austin's DNA was located on the magazine of one of the firearms, and she will forfeit ownership of the firearms and ammunition seized in the case to the United States.

Austin was also ordered to pay a $100 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund and serve three years of supervised release following her prison sentence.

The case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) and Project Guardian, which aim to reduce violent crime and make neighborhoods safer.

The case was investigated by the Rosebud Sioux Tribe Law Enforcement Services and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Elmore.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-sd/pr/rapid-city-woman-sentenced-firearm-charge-1