A Whiteville man, Robert Jamar Avant, has been sentenced to nearly six years in prison after pleading guilty to charges of possessing a firearm by a felon during a shootout that inadvertently wounded a pregnant woman, leading to an emergency c-section to save her child, the Justice Department reported. Avant, 33, was given a 71-month sentence on October 17, 2024, following an incident that took place over three years prior at the Sandy Ridge Apartment Complex in Whiteville. This outcome emerges amidst efforts to more assertively address gun violence and criminal activity in the community.
The May 13, 2021 incident spiraled into chaos when Avant and his co-defendant, Dashaud Maultsby, got involved in a heated argument and later returned heavily armed to open fire on a group of men. The shootout, described by U.S. Attorney Michael F. Easley, Jr., happened worryingly close to children and parents at nearby t-ball fields. "This reckless shootout, adjacent to t-ball fields where hundreds of kids and parents were playing, left a pregnant woman shot and enduring an emergency c-section to save her baby. It is a miracle the baby survived, and the Whiteville Police Department deserves credit for their swift action on this case," Easley said on the U.S. Attorney's Office website. He stressed the significance of partnerships with local enforcement to "shut down senseless violence that degrades communities and puts innocent lives at risk."
During the gunfight, Avant was accidentally hit in the head when Maultsby dropped his rifle while trying quickly to get into a vehicle. The Whiteville Police Department with speed responded to the chaotic scene, tending to Avant and securing the firearms found near him. Court records indicated Avant's prohibited status from his prior convictions. In the crossfire, a pregnant woman was shot, leading to the emergency medical procedures performed to save her unborn child. Both Maultsby and Avant were apprehended following the episode, with Maultsby later receiving a maximum sentence of 10 years due to his criminal record, including a prior conviction for attempted trafficking of opium.
This case is central to Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program aimed at uniting various levels of law enforcement with the communities they serve to collaboratively reduce violent crime and gun violence. The Department's violent crime reduction strategy, launched in May 2021, is oriented around establishing trust within communities, buttressing organizations that prevent violence, and strategically setting priorities for enforcement. As stated in a Justice Department press release, "Those partnerships led to a statutory maximum sentence against one of the shooters. We won’t stop fighting for our communities until every kid lives free from gun violence," reinforced Easley.
U.S. District Judge Louise W. Flanagan handed down the sentence to Avant, while Maultsby's sentencing took place earlier on June 6, 2024. Both sentences result from investigations carried out by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Whiteville Police Department, with Assistant U.S. Attorney Jaren E. Kelly managing the prosecution.
