Felon Pleads Guilty to Possessing a Firearm
MINNEAPOLIS — Recently in federal court, a 36–year–old felon pleaded guilty to possessing a .25–caliber pistol. On January 23, 2012, Calvin Bankhead, no known address, pleaded guilty to one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm. Bankhead, who was indicted on September 12, 2011, entered his plea before United States District Court Judge David S. Doty.
In his plea agreement, Bankhead admitted that on April 2, 2011, he possessed the loaded pistol. In addition, Bankhead admitted that police also seized several rounds of ammunition from the firearm. Because he is a felon, Bankhead is prohibited under federal law from possessing firearms at any time. Bankhead’s prior Hennepin County convictions include first degree possession of a controlled substance in 2002 and second–degree assault in 2006, as well as a second–degree assault conviction in Anoka County in 1996.
For his crime, Bankhead faces a potential maximum penalty of ten years in prison. Judge Doty will determine his sentence at a future hearing. This case is the result of an investigation by the Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office’s Violent Offender Task Force, the Anoka County Sheriff’s Office, the Anoka Police Department, the Columbia Heights Police Department, the Fridley Police Department, the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, and the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey M. Bryan.
Note, this case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN
), an initiative launched by the U.S. Justice Department in 2001 to promote a multi–jurisdictional, comprehensive approach to reducing gun crime in America. PSN provides resources to strengthen law enforcement and crime prevention partnerships that work to make our streets and communities safer.
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