FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

THURSDAY - February 25, 2010

PREVIOUSLY CONVICTED FELON RECEIVES FEDERAL PRISON

FOR UNLAWFUL FIREARM POSSESSION

RALEIGH - United States Attorney George E.B. Holding announced that in federal court today United States District Judge Terrece W. Boyle sentenced DEMETRIUS MONQUETTE JOYNER, 23, of Raleigh, North Carolina, to 35 months’ imprisonment followed by three years supervised release.

A Federal Grand Jury returned a Criminal Indictment on May 27, 2009. On November 17, 2009, JOYNER pled guilty to unlawful possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.

On February 18, 2009, a parole officer was executing an unannounced search at JOYNER’s residence in Raleigh, North Carolina. Being part of parole conditions and newly on parole, this was the first unannounced visit for JOYNER. After knocking, JOYNER came to the door with a loaded firearm in his waistband. The probation officer immediately ordered JOYNER to drop the gun. Once JOYNER complied, the probation officer contacted the Raleigh Police Department who then placed JOYNER under arrest.

JOYNER has a prior felony conviction for assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill or inflict serious bodily injury.

“Often probation officers face uncertainty when performing their duties, as seen in this case. Many times the tasks they perform are underappreciated as they deal with individuals who have been convicted of violent crimes and continue to break the law. This probation officer was fortunate in this situation that the defendant complied with what he was being told to do. We cannot applaud probation officers enough for the difficult and stressful job they perform,” stated Mr. Holding.

This case was part of the Project Safe Neighborhoods(PSN) which encourages federal, state, and local agencies to cooperate in a unified “team effort” against gun crime, targeting repeat offenders who continually plague their communities.

Investigation of this case was conducted by the North Carolina Department of Corrections, Parole and Pardon Services and the Raleigh Police Department. Assistant United States Attorney William Gilmore represented the government.

News releases are available on the U. S. Attorney’s web page at www.usdoj.gov/usao/nce within 48 hours of release.