Port St. Lucie Man Pleads Guilty to Possessing a Glock Switch

MIAMI – On June 11, Darroll C. Gilchrist, 18, of Port St. Lucie, Fla., pled guilty to possession of an unregistered firearm.

Gilchrist was arrested on July 28, 2023, on an outstanding warrant.  During his arrest, deputies found a Glock model 19 firearm, modified with a “Glock switch” on Gilchrist’s person.  The “Glock switch” enabled the firearm to fire automatically, more than one shot, by a single function of the trigger.

Sentencing is scheduled for Sept. 5, before U. S. District Judge Aileen M. Cannon in Fort Pierce, Fla.  Gilchrist faces up to 10 years in federal prison and up to three years of supervised release. The court will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida; Special Agent in Charge Christopher A. Robinson of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), Miami Field Office; and Sheriff Keith Pearson of the St. Lucie County Sheriff’s Office made the announcement.

ATF Fort Pierce and St. Lucie County Sheriff’s Office investigated the case. Assistant United States Attorney Christopher Hudock is prosecuting it.

This prosecution is a part of the U.S. Department of Justice’s Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) program.  PSN is the centerpiece of the Department’s violent crime reduction efforts.  PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime.  Through the PSN program, a broad spectrum of law enforcement and community 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 to reduce violence crime and gun violence, and to make our local neighborhoods safer for everyone.

You may find a copy of this press release (and any updates) on the website of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida at www.justice.gov/usao-sdfl.

Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov under case no. 24-cr-14005.

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