A South Carolina man was sentenced in federal court on Tuesday, June 10 for being a felon in possession of a firearm, announced Anne M. Tompkins, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina. Lawrence Doe, Jr., 30, of Beaufort, S.C. was sentenced by Chief U.S. District Judge Martin Reidinger to 180 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release.
Chief Chris Beddingfield of the Columbus Police Department joins U.S. Attorney Tompkins in making the announcement.
According to the criminal indictment and statements made in court, on or about August 10, 2012, Columbus Police Department conducted a traffic stop of a vehicle in which Doe was a passenger. During the traffic stop, law enforcement found a loaded Smith & Wesson .357 magnum revolver inside the car. Doe’s foot had been resting on the firearm until law enforcement ordered Doe out of the vehicle. At the time of the offense, Doe was a convicted felon and was prohibited from possessing a firearm. In August 2013, Doe pleaded guilty to the gun charge. Court records indicate that Doe had four prior burglary convictions in South Carolina and at sentencing he qualified as an armed career criminal.
Doe has been in federal custody since January 2013. He will be transferred to the custody of the Federal Bureau of Prisons upon designation of a federal facility. All federal sentences are served without the possibility of parole.
The investigation was handled by the Columbus Police Department and prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Richard Edwards of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Asheville.

– article submitted by
Lia Bantavani, U.S. Attorney’s Office, Western District of North Carolina