Louisiana Felon Pleads Guilty to Firearms Charges After Police find Firearm During Traffic Stop

New Orleans, Louisiana – The Department of Justice U.S. Attorney’s Office Eastern District of Louisiana announced that Ronnie Davis, a resident of New Orleans, Louisiana pleaded guilty on January 31, 2023, to being a felon in possession of a firearm before United States District Judge Susie Morgan.

According to public records, the New Orleans Police Department ("NOPD") was attempting to locate a gray Nissan Kicks SUV vehicle on May 4, 2022. NOPD detectives using the NOPD Real Time Crime Camera ("RTCC") near Monroe Street and Belfast Street in New Orleans observed Davis driving the vehicle on that day.

NOPD uniformed officers activated their lights and sirens and positioned their fully marked NOPD vehicles behind the Nissan Kicks. Davis came to a halt in the 8700 block of Belfast Street. Officers later discovered a black and tan semi-automatic pistol with an extended magazine and a "Draco" style rifle on the front passenger's side floorboard.

Davis pled guilty in Orleans Parish Criminal District Court on June 23, 2016, under case number 527-901, to illegal carrying of a weapon with a controlled dangerous substance, a violation of LA-RS 14:95(E), possession of cocaine, a violation of LA-RS 40:967(C), possession of heroin, a violation of LA-RS 40:966(C), and possession with intent to distribute marijuana, a violation of LA-RS 40:966(A) (2).

Davis faces a maximum sentence of ten (10) years in prison, a fine of up to $250,000.00, up to three (3) years of supervised release following any sentence, and a mandatory $100 special assessment fee.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program that brings all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve together to reduce violent crime and gun violence and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. The Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy to strengthen PSN on May 26, 2021, based on the following core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation, Louisiana State Police, and the New Orleans Police Department all looked into the case.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Mike Trummel of the Violent Crime Unit is prosecuting the case.