Moultrie firearm felon sentenced to 98 months

MOULTRIE — Middle District of Georgia U.S. Attorney Charlie Peeler announced Friday that Senior U.S. District Court Judge Hugh Lawson has sentenced Michael Trevor Haynes, 37, of Moultrie, to 98 months in prison for possession of a firearm by a person previously convicted of domestic violence and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.

Haynes, who was sentenced Thursday, was found guilty of the charges on Aug. 8 following a jury trial. Officials said evidence presented showed that, on Aug. 10, 2016, two Moultrie police officers approached a vehicle in which Haynes was sitting. The officers began questioning Haynes as he sat in the car. The car door was open and Haynes had his legs out the door and his feet on the ground.

Haynes provided officers with a false name and a false date of birth. Some of Haynes’ family began walking toward the car from a home nearby. When the officers asked them about the defendant’s identity, Haynes charged at one of the officers and struck him in the face. The other officer grabbed Haynes in an effort to prevent him from fleeing, and he hit that officer in the face.

The officers were eventually forced to use tasers twice to subdue Haynes. During the arrest, officers removed a .38 caliber revolver from Haynes’ right front pocket. During a search at the jail facility, officers found two small bags of marijuana on him. Officials said they later caught Haynes attempting to flush another small bag of marijuana down a toilet.

The case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods, a program that has been historically successful in bringing together all levels of law enforcement to reduce violent crime and make neighborhoods safer for everyone. U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions has made turning the tide of rising violent crime in America a top priority.

In October, as part of a series of actions to address this crime trend, Sessions announced the reinvigoration of PSN and directed all U.S. Attorney’s offices to develop a district crime reduction strategy that incorporates the lessons learned since PSN launched in 2001.

“Mr. Haynes is an example of the type of person Project Safe Neighborhoods is designed to get off the streets: a man with a prior conviction of a violent crime, who desperately and violently resisted arrest until forcibly subdued, all the while carrying a concealed handgun,” Peeler said. “It is so very fortunate that his illegal weapon did not come into play during his arrest.”

The case was investigated by the Macon office of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Moultrie Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Sonja B. Profit prosecuted the case for the federal government.

Staff Photo