Bryson LaPaul Blair, 30, of Bakersfield, pleaded guilty today to being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition, United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner announced.
According to court documents, during the execution of a search warrant at Blair’s residence, officers found a loaded Russian assault weapon under Blair’s bed and 145 rounds of ammunition. Blair was previously convicted in Kern County of a felony and was prohibited from possessing firearms and ammunition.
Blair is scheduled to be sentenced by United States District Judge Lawrence J. O’Neil on June 13, 2016. Blair faces a maximum statutory penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.
This case is the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, and the Bakersfield Police Department. Assistant United States Attorney Karen Escobar is prosecuting the case.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), an initiative that brings together federal, state and local law enforcement to combat gun and gang crime. At the core of PSN is increased federal prosecution to incapacitate chronic violent offenders as well as to communicate a credible deterrent threat to potential gun offenders.
