Tampa, Florida – U.S. District Judge William F. Jung has sentenced Davion Rivers (27, Bradenton) to 15 years and 8 months in federal prison for possessing a firearm as a convicted felon. The court also ordered Rivers to forfeit the firearm, which was traceable to the offense. A federal jury had found Rivers guilty on July 11, 2022.
According to court documents, on August 10, 2020, law enforcement officers responded to a call for service after Rivers viciously attacked a minor, breaking the minor’s jaw. The officers encountered Rivers shortly after meeting with the minor. During the encounter, Rivers yelled at the officers and pushed one of them. An officer saw that Rivers had a firearm in his pocket after the push. The officer tased Rivers and recovered the firearm. The firearm was a Taurus Judge, a revolver that can fire shotgun shells, and which had five spent shell casings in the chamber. The firearm had also previously been reported stolen. Officers later secured a search warrant for Rivers’s phone and found that it contained a text message thread where Rivers had negotiated and agreed to buy the firearm.
As a previously convicted felon, Rivers is prohibited from possessing a firearm under federal law. At time of this offense, Rivers was on federal supervised release for distributing narcotics. He had been released from custody in July 2020.
This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Bradenton Police Department. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Charlie D. Connally and David W.A. Chee.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.