Madison Felon Sentenced to 27 Months for Illegal Gun Possession

MADISON, WIS. – Timothy M. O’Shea, United States Attorney for the Western District of Wisconsin, announced that Anthony Bailey, 33, Madison, Wisconsin was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge William M. Conley to 27 months in federal prison for possessing a firearm as a felon.  This prison term will be followed by a 3-year term of supervised release.  Bailey pleaded guilty to this charge on March 20, 2023.

On February 6, 2022, an officer with the Fitchburg Police Department responded to a noise complaint in a residential neighborhood. When the officer arrived, he saw Bailey involved in a physical fight with his girlfriend in the street. After the two stopped fighting, Bailey admitted to having a loaded Glock gun in his pants. He is prohibited from possessing firearms and ammunition as a result of two felony convictions from 2008 and 2010.

In sentencing Bailey, Judge Conley stated the sentence was justified by Bailey’s lack of compliance under pretrial supervision, which included committing a new crime after failing to appear for a hearing in this case. Judge Conley also stated that he could not ignore that to date, Bailey had failed to choose a life path free from crime. 

The charge against Bailey was the result of an investigation conducted by Fitchburg Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, with the assistance of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Taylor L. Kraus handled the prosecution of this case.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.