Maurice Montrae Parks, Felon Firearm Possession, NC 2015

Wilson, NC resident MAURICE MONTRAE PARKS was convicted Wednesday of being a felon in possession of a firearm following a three-day federal jury trial before Senior United States District Judge W. Earl Britt. The verdict, handed down in Raleigh, marks a grim coda to a chaotic midnight incident from 2015 that sent cops scrambling through quiet residential streets and ended with a rifle abandoned in the grass of a vacant lot.

Shortly after midnight on September 5, 2015, neighbors reported a man banging on a residence door while waving a firearm. When Wilson Police responded, PARKS bolted in his car, sparking a high-speed chase through residential blocks. Officers watched as he cut through the lawn of an empty home at a street corner, slamming on the brakes beside the property before reversing course and bailing out near the original scene. He didn’t get far. Cops grabbed him on the driveway of the home whose occupant had dialed 911.

Back at the vacant corner lot, officers found fresh tire tracks leading to a spot where PARKS had briefly halted. There, lying in the grass, was a Ruger Mini 14 rifle. Ballistics and field testing confirmed the weapon was operable and had been recently handled. Evidence presented at trial tied PARKS directly to the firearm and the reckless flight from law enforcement.

As a previously convicted felon, PARKS is legally barred from possessing any firearm. Prosecutors from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina emphasized that his actions that night posed a clear and present danger to the community. Assistant United States Attorneys Jake D. Pugh and John Stuart Bruce led the government’s case, laying out a timeline of PARKS’ movements, witness statements, and physical evidence linking him to the rifle.

The case was prosecuted under Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), the federal initiative relaunched in 2017 by then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions to combat rising violent crime. PSN focuses on stacking federal resources behind local investigations, particularly those involving illegal gun possession by violent offenders. The Wilson Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives (ATF) jointly investigated the case, underscoring the multi-agency push to stem gun violence.

United States Attorney Robert J. Higdon, Jr. said the conviction sends a message: “Felonious possession of a firearm is not a victimless offense. It puts weapons in the hands of those who’ve already broken the law, endangering entire communities.” Sentencing for MAURICE MONTRAE PARKS is scheduled for a later date, with federal sentencing guidelines carrying a maximum penalty of up to 10 years in prison.