An Orleans Parish resident, Elijah Martin, aged 27, has pled guilty to federal firearm offenses, Acting U.S. Attorney Michael M. Simpson announced last week. Martin entered his plea to two counts of being a felon in possession of a firearm, a violation that potentially comes with a heavy toll: up to 15 years behind bars, fines reaching $250,000 on each count, along with supervised release and a mandatory special fee after imprisonment.
Caught twice, and now facing the consequences – that is the short history of MARTIN's legal woes. On December 16, 2023, the East Jefferson Parish Levee Police Department pulled MARTIN over, only to discover he was carrying a Smith & Wesson Model M&P Shield, 9mm pistol, despite his barred status due to prior felonies. The New Orleans Police Department ran into MARTIN under similar circumstances, on January 25, 2024, finding him with another weapon, a Glock Model 26, 9mm pistol, according to a Justice Department release.
Martin finds himself in the spotlight as a result of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program that alliance law enforcement at all levels with the communities they protect. The goal is to tamp down on violent crime and gun violence, and foster safer neighborhoods. PSN has been around since back in 2021, when the Department dialed up its violent crime reduction strategy.
This latest legal chapter for Martin was made possible by teamwork between the East Jefferson Parish Levee Police Department, NOPD, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Assistant United States Attorney Lauren Sarver of the Narcotics Unit is handling the prosecution, said the Justice Department in their announcement.
