A Washington man is headed to federal prison for more than three years after a judge sentenced him Wednesday for carrying a loaded semiautomatic pistol while already a convicted felon. Kiyel Tyquello Kearney, 23, received a 40-month prison term and two years of supervised release after pleading guilty in January to unlawful possession of a firearm and ammunition by a felon. Prosecutors say the weapon, a Glock 33 .357-caliber pistol with 14 rounds in a 15-round magazine, was recovered following a ShotSpotter alert and a crash in May 2025.
How police say they found the weapon
According to court documents, officers responding to a ShotSpotter notification in the 1200 block of Harvard Street NW in May 2025 spotted a gray Acura driving erratically. A short time later, they watched the same vehicle lose control and crash. All four occupants bolted from the car on foot.
Police say Kearney was seen trying to hide a firearm as he ran, before he fell and surrendered. Officers then recovered a semiautomatic Glock 33 .357-caliber pistol and a magazine loaded with 14 rounds, as reported by WJLA.
Court filings state that surveillance footage captured Kearney with several other individuals who had guns, and that shots were later fired, striking a bystander who was taken to the hospital. WJLA reviewed those court records.
MPD's recovery logs
Metropolitan Police Department records for the week of May 5–12, 2025 list an arrest tied to the recovery of a Glock 33 .357 and other pistols, naming the arrestee as "Kyiel Kearney." The MPD bulletin notes that detectives recovered 66 firearms in the District during that week and breaks out specific recoveries by block and by firearm model, according to MPD.
Previous federal case and appeal
Kearney was already on federal radar. A June 2024 release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia states that he was convicted in Maryland and later sentenced for illegally purchasing ammunition after a prior felony firearms conviction. Justice Department records detail that case.
His attempt to get the matter in front of the nation’s highest court went nowhere. The Supreme Court denied his petition for certiorari on January 20, 2026, according to Supreme Court records.
What the law says and where this sentence fits
Federal law, 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(1), bars people with felony convictions from possessing firearms and carries potential penalties of up to 10 years in prison. Cornell Law explains the statute.
A fast-facts report from the D.C. Sentencing Commission shows that the average prison term for FIP-1 convictions has been about 20 months. That makes Kearney’s 40-month sentence roughly double the local average in recent years, D.C. Sentencing Commission data indicate.
Prosecutors argued that the stiff sentence was warranted in light of Kearney’s record and what court filings describe as armed activity in public spaces. The case highlights ongoing efforts by federal and local authorities to get illegal guns off Washington streets and to pursue repeat offenders in gun cases.
