Louisville, KY – A federal grand jury in Louisville, KY returned an indictment today charging a local man with illegally possessing a machine gun and possessing a firearm after having been prohibited.
According to court documents, on or about June 16, 2022, William Thompson, 31, knowingly possessed a machine gun, a Glock Switch bearing no serial number, and a firearm after having previously been convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence.
Thompson is charged with illegal possession of a machine gun and possession of a firearm by a prohibited person. Thompson is currently in state custody at the Louisville Metro Department of Corrections and will be scheduled for his initial court appearance before a U.S. Magistrate Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Kentucky once he is transferred to federal custody. If convicted, he faces a maximum potential penalty of 10 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. There is no parole in the federal system.
U. S. Attorney Michael A. Bennett of the Western District of Kentucky, and ATF Special Agent in Charge Shawn Morrow made the announcement.
The ATF and Louisville Metro Police Department are investigating the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Alicia P. Gomez is prosecuting the case.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhood, 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.
An indictment is merely an allegation, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
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