Paris B. Young, Drug Trafficking, Missouri 2018

Kansas City Man Convicted of Drug Trafficking, Illegally Possessing Firearm

A Kansas City, Missouri, man was convicted by a federal jury today of drug trafficking and illegally possessing a firearm.

Paris B. Young, 48, was found guilty of possessing crack cocaine with the intent to distribute, possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug-trafficking crime, being a felon in possession of a firearm, and possessing a firearm with an obliterated serial number.

Kansas City, Missouri, police officers stopped Young on June 16, 2018, because he failed to signal while making a turn at the intersection of 41st and Garfield Avenue in Kansas City, Missouri.

Under federal law, it is illegal for anyone who has been convicted of a felony to be in possession of any firearm or ammunition. Young has prior felony convictions for murder, armed criminal action, possessing a controlled substance, and two prior felony convictions for distributing a controlled substance.

Following the presentation of evidence, the jury in the U.S. District Court in Kansas City, Missouri, deliberated for less than an hour before returning the guilty verdict to U.S. District Judge Greg Kays, ending a trial that began Tuesday, Feb. 11.

Under federal statutes, Young is subject to a mandatory minimum sentence of 20 years in federal prison without parole, up to a sentence of life in federal prison without parole.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey Q. McCarther and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Sean T. Foley. It was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Kansas City, Mo., Police Department.

Project Safe Neighborhoods, a program that brings together all levels of law enforcement to reduce violent crime and make neighborhoods safer for everyone, is also involved in this case.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-wdmo/pr/jury-convicts-kc-man-drug-trafficking-illegal-firearm-0