Violent Repeat Offender Sentenced to 15 Years in Prison for Illegal Gun Possession
Defendant Previously Served 10-Year Sentence for Assaulting Toddler
| U.S. Attorney’s Office September 10, 2013 |
A repeat offender who was arrested in December 2011 with two firearms in his Tacoma apartment was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Tacoma to 15 years in prison and five years of supervised release, announced U.S. Attorney Jenny A. Durkan. James Quincy Wilkinson, 39, has prior convictions for burglary (1993), unlawful possession of a firearm (1994, 1999), assault (1995, 98, 99), and assault of a child (2005). Wilkinson was released from prison in January 2011. Department of Corrections officers conducted the search after getting reports that Wilkinson was dealing drugs and possessing firearms. U.S. District Judge Benjamin H. Settle determined Wilkinson qualified as an armed career criminal, saying that the case was “extraordinary.” The judge stated that Wilkinson’s criminal history showed “indifference to the suffering and safety” of others and found that a long sentence was required “for the protection of the public.”
According to records filed in the case, in December 2011, the Pierce County Sheriff’s Office and the South Sound Gang Task Force received reports that Wilkinson was dealing drugs and was armed. Wilkinson was on community supervision following a 10-year prison sentence for assaulting and critically injuring a toddler. Community Corrections officers searched Wilkinson’s car and found crack cocaine. In his apartment, they found two loaded weapons—one of them stolen. At a bench trial in September 2012, Wilkinson was found guilty of being a felon in possession of a firearm and an armed career criminal. The finding mandates a sentence of at least 15 years in prison.
The case was investigated by the Tacoma Police Department; the Washington State Department of Corrections; Lakewood Police Department, Washington State Patrol; FBI; Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF); and the South Sound Gang Task Force.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Michael Dion.