PRESS RELEASE
April 8, 2008
Lexington, Ky. —Charles Wesley Collins, 44, of Winchester, Ky. pleaded guilty today to being a felon in possession of a firearm.
In the course of his guilty plea, Collins admitted that on or about a day in late August or early September 2006, he knowingly possessed a Raven Arms, model P-25, .25 caliber semiautomatic pistol. Collins also admitted that prior to his possession of the pistol he had been convicted of a felony offense, that is, third degree burglary, in Whitley Circuit Court in 1984. Collins was indicted in November of 2007.
James A. Zerhusen, Acting United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky, Clark County Sheriff Berl Perdue, and Paul J. Vido, Special Agent in Charge, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives (ATF - Louisville Field Division), jointly made the announcement today after Collins entered his guilty plea.
The investigation was conducted by the Clark County Sheriff’s Office, and ATF. The United States was represented in the case by Assistant United States Attorney Robert M. Duncan, Jr. The case was prosecuted by the United States Attorney’s Office in connection with the Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) program. The PSN program is a Department of Justice initiative aimed at reducing gun crimes, including the illegal possession of firearms by convicted felons.
Collins is currently scheduled to appear for sentencing before United States District Court Senior Judge Karl S. Forester in Lexington, Ky. on Friday, June 20, 2008, at 10:30 a.m. Collins faces a maximum prison sentence of 10 years. However, any sentence following conviction would be imposed by the court after consideration of the United States Sentencing Guidelines and the federal statute governing the imposition of sentences.