Description: Bangor, Maine criminal defense lawyer represented the Defendant charged with being a felon in possession of a firearm.

In November 2020, the Maine Warden Service (MWS) received a complaint about shots being fired at a residence in Exeter, Maine. A warden observed bullets lodged in the walls of the residence, and the homeowners reported hearing gunshots from across the pond and seeing two individuals wearing hunter’s orange. MWS located Scott Lynch Jr., 23, and a 14-year-old minor in a parked truck. Lynch admitted to the warden that he had been target shooting in the woods. He also told the warden that he was a convicted felon. MWS located .22 caliber and .308 caliber casings in the woods where Lynch stated they had been shooting.

While at the minor’s house to retrieve the .22 rifle, the warden overheard the minor tell his mother that there was another rifle hidden in the house, which was then retrieved by the mother. Lynch had the key to the gun case on a key ring on his belt. Two guns were retrieved from the case, a .308 caliber rifle and a 9mm pistol, with obliterated serial numbers. Further investigation showed both the guns and the case had been stolen from a vehicle in Millinocket, and Lynch told investigators that he had traded a dirt bike for the firearms.

Lynch faces up to 10 years in prison, a fine up to $250,000 and up to three years of supervised release. He will be sentenced after the completion of a presentence investigation report by the U.S. Probation Office. A federal district judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

The Maine Warden Service and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives investigated the case.

POSSESSION OF A FIREARM BY A FELON; 18:922(g)(1) AND 924(a)(2)
(1)

(g) It shall be unlawful for any person—
(1) who has been convicted in any court of, a crime punishable by imprisonment for a term exceeding one year;
(2) who is a fugitive from justice;
(3) who is an unlawful user of or addicted to any controlled substance (as defined in section 102 of the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 802));
(4) who has been adjudicated as a mental defective or who has been committed to a mental institution;
(5) who, being an alien—
(A) is illegally or unlawfully in the United States; or
(B) except as provided in subsection (y)(2), has been admitted to the United States under a nonimmigrant visa (as that term is defined in section 101(a)(26) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(26)));
(6) who has been discharged from the Armed Forces under dishonorable conditions;
(7) who, having been a citizen of the United States, has renounced his citizenship;
(8) who is subject to a court order that—
(A) was issued after a hearing of which such person received actual notice, and at which such person had an opportunity to participate;
(B) restrains such person from harassing, stalking, or threatening an intimate partner of such person or child of such intimate partner or person, or engaging in other conduct that would place an intimate partner in reasonable fear of bodily injury to the partner or child; and
(C)
(i) includes a finding that such person represents a credible threat to the physical safety of such intimate partner or child; or
(ii) by its terms explicitly prohibits the use, attempted use, or threatened use of physical force against such intimate partner or child that would reasonably be expected to cause bodily injury; or
(9) who has been convicted in any court of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence,
to ship or transport in interstate or foreign commerce, or possess in or affecting commerce, any firearm or ammunition; or to receive any firearm or ammunition which has been shipped or transported in interstate or foreign commerce.

Outcome: Minute Entry for proceedings held before JUDGE LANCE E. WALKER: Change of Plea Hearing held as to SCOTT LYNCH, JR. Guilty Plea entered as to Count 1; Plea accepted. Defendant returned to state custody. (Court Reporter: Cathy Ford) (mmy) (Entered: 12/13/2023)

Plaintiff's Experts:

Defendant's Experts:

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