Jacksonville, Florida –United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg announces the return by a grand jury of an indictment charging Thomas Oliver Morrison (62, Jacksonville) with knowingly making a false statement to a federally licensed firearms dealer. If convicted, Morrison faces a maximum penalty of 5years in federal prison.
According to the indictment, Morrison attempted to purchase a handgun from a federally licensed firearms dealer on April 20, 2022. Morrison falsely stated on the required ATF Form 4473 that he was not a felon, when in fact he had numerous prior felony convictions, including false imprisonment, battery – second offense, grand theft, possession of controlled substance and dealing in stolen property. Morrison also falsely stated that he was not subject to a final injunction for protection against domestic violence and that he had not been previously involuntarily committed to a mental institution.
An indictment is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed one or more violations of federal criminal law, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.
This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. It is being prosecuted by Special Assistant United States Attorney Cyrus P. Zomorodian.
This case is part of the joint federal, state, and local Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Program, the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.