Western District of Oklahoma, Domestic Violence Firearms Offenses, Oklahoma 2023

The Western District of Oklahoma is under fire for its role in prosecuting domestic violence firearms offenses as part of ‘Operation 922.’

Acting Director of the Justice Department’s Office of Violence Against Women, Katharine Sullivan, singled out the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Oklahoma for its success in tackling domestic violence firearms cases. The office’s initiative, ‘Operation 922,’ is a local implementation of Project Safe Neighborhoods, a program to prevent and prosecute violent crime.

As part of Operation 922, federal prosecutors in the Western District of Oklahoma focus on enforcing federal laws to keep firearms out of the hands of those who have committed domestic violence. Specifically, they target domestic violence abusers who are subject to a victim protection order or restraining order, or who have been previously convicted in any court of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence.

Section 922 of Title 18 of the United States Code prohibits those specific offenders from possessing firearms or ammunition. The U.S. Attorney’s Office also targets domestic violence offenders through Section 922’s prohibition on possessing a firearm after any felony conviction.

‘You cannot have safe neighborhoods without first having safe homes,’ said Bob Troester, First Assistant U.S. Attorney. ‘This effort to protect victims of domestic violence relies upon our committed partnership with District Attorney David Prater and his office, the Oklahoma City Police Department and Chief Bill Citty, and Palomar, Oklahoma City’s Family Justice Center.’

Locally, since Operation 922 was initiated last year, over 50 domestic-violence-related cases have been charged by Western District prosecutors. These cases include all prosecutions for illegal possession of firearms related to domestic violence.

Nationally, according to Justice Department data, the number of defendants charged in the specific category of possessing a firearm after a misdemeanor conviction (18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(9)) has grown by nearly 80%, from 110 in Fiscal Year 2016 to 197 in Fiscal Year 2018. In the same period, convictions increased more than 160% from 55 in Fiscal Year 2016 to 148 in Fiscal Year 2018.

For further information about Operation 922, please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Office at (405) 553-8999.

Related Federal Cases