A Jacksonville man, Christopher O’Neal Houser, aged 44, has been sentenced to four years in federal prison for illegally possessing a firearm as a convicted felon, a decision handed down by U.S. District Judge Brian J. Davis, according to the Department of Justice. Houser, whose prior convictions include possession of methamphetamine, grand theft, sexual assault, and battery, pleaded guilty on October 15, 2024, acknowledging his possession and sale of a sawed-off shotgun to another felon on February 2, 2024.
The arrest and subsequent guilty plea of Houser was the result of an investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives paired with the Clay County Sheriff’s Office Houser's criminal history spanned over two decades with his most egregious offenses occurring in 2002 when he was convicted of sexually assaulting multiple women, he also faced a conviction for misdemeanor battery in 2019. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Brenna Falzetta, who worked to ensure that Houser's repeated offenses did not go unpunished.
This incident and conviction fall under the umbrella of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a martialling of resources from various levels of law enforcement aimed at mitigating violent crimes and gun violence within communities. According to the Department of Justice, PSN's revitalized strategy, which was launched on May 26, 2021, prioritizes fostering trust between communities and law enforcement agencies, supporting violence prevention groups, and setting strategic enforcement targets while also tracking the outcomes of these efforts to ensure safer neighborhoods for all.
