Florida career criminal sentenced to 188 months for possessing a firearm

FLORIDA – A convicted felon has been sentenced to federal prison after pleading guilty to possessing a firearm and ammunition, according to the United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.

Eddie D. Starks, 41, of Tallahassee, Florida, was sentenced to 188 months in federal prison after pleading guilty to possessing a firearm and ammunition as a convicted felon, said Jason R. Coody, United States Attorney, for the Northern District of Florida.

“Our law enforcement partnerships play such a vital role in fighting violent crime and protecting the public,” said Coody.

“This sentencing is another example that working jointly with our partners is making our communities safer.”

According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, law enforcement responded to Starks’ apartment because of a 911 call alleging that he had a firearm and was threatening to kill his wife. When Tallahassee Police Department officers arrived, they reported hearing screaming and yelling coming from inside the apartment.

According to police, Starks’ wife answered the door and told officers that he was armed inside and had threatened to kill her with the gun. Officers arrested Starks and located where he had hidden a firearm in a backpack inside the apartment, according to police.

As officers removed the backpack containing the firearm from the residence, Starks allegedly admitted that they would find a quarter-pound of marijuana and a firearm in the backpack.

“We are pleased to see another violent felon brought to justice and taken off our community’s streets,” said Deputy Chief Jason Laursen.

“Our officers and detectives work tirelessly every day to enhance the safety of citizens. Ensuring felons do not have access to a firearm is crucial in this continued effort to protect the community we serve.”

According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Starks was prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition because he was a convicted felon. Starks had 12 prior felony convictions and qualified for enhanced sentencing as an Armed Career Criminal because he had three or more convictions for violent felonies and/or serious drug offenses committed on separate occasions.

He had been released from federal prison approximately three months before this arrest and remained on supervised release out of the Middle District of Georgia, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.

Following his 188-month prison sentence, Starks will be on federal supervised release for five years.

The sentencing resulted from the collaborative work of the Tallahassee Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney James A. McCain.