July 27, 2009
DENVER MAN SENTENCED TO SIX YEARS IN PRISON FOR BEING A FELON IN POSSESSION OF A FIREARM AND AMMUNITION
DENVER – David Lee Young, age 20, of Denver, Colorado, was sentenced last Friday by U.S. District Court Judge John L. Kane to serve 76 months (just over 6 years) in federal prison, followed by 3 years of supervised release, for being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition, Acting United States Attorney David Gaouette and ATF Special Agent in Charge Richard Chase announced. Young appeared at the sentencing hearing in custody, and was then remanded.
David Lee Young was indicted by a federal grand jury in Denver on October 21, 2008. He was found guilty following a 3 day jury trial before Judge Kane on May 13, 2009. He was sentenced by Judge Kane on Friday, July 24, 2009.
According to the facts presented to the jury during trial, as well as the facts contained in the United States’ sentencing statement filed with the court, on the night of September 25, 2008, and into the early morning hours of September 26, a security guard on duty at Club Vinyl, a Denver nightclub, saw a group of people gathered near a bus stop adjacent to the club. The crowd suddenly scattered and began to run. The security guard saw that the crowd was running away from David Lee Young. Young, at the time, was pointing a silver, semi-automatic handgun towards the group of people. He then tucked the handgun into his waistband and started to walk away. The security guard then gave chase. He pursued Young into a parking lot, where the defendant ran behind a car, and then crouched down. The security guard drew his sidearm and ordered Young to walk out from behind the vehicle. Young attempted to flee, but he was ultimately apprehended and handcuffed. The guard then went back to the car behind which Young had ducked moments earlier. Underneath the car, in the exact area where Young had bent down, the guard found a silver-colored, semiautomatic handgun. Young and the handgun were turned over to Denver Police officers.
The handgun was a Lorcin, 9mm, semiautomatic firearm, loaded with 10 rounds of 9mm ammunition. Young had been previously convicted in Denver of felony possession of a controlled substance, making him a person prohibited from possessing a firearm and ammunition. The defendant was on state probation at the time he illegally possessed the firearm and ammunition. During the trial, according to the sentencing statement, Young testified under oath that he never possessed the firearm. Young’s testimony was contradicted by government witnesses. During sentencing, Judge Kane found that Young had perjured himself. The perjury along with Young’s menacing during the crime added time to his prison sentence.
“The ATF and Denver Police Department continue to successfully catch felons in possession of firearms, resulting in a safer community for all of us,” said Acting U.S. Attorney David Gaouette.
“The law enforcement partnerships we have forged are efficiently, effectively and successfully working in our communities to combat violent crime,” said Denver ATF Special Agent in Charge Richard Chase.
This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and the Denver Police Department.
Young was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Richard Hosley and Ryan Bergsieker.
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