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Date: 12-07-2021
Case Style:
Case Number: 2:18-cr-00259-DCN
Judge: David C Norton
Court: United States District Court for the District of South Carolina (Charleston County)
Plaintiff's Attorney: United States Attorney’s Office
Defendant's Attorney:
Description: Charleston, South Carolina criminal defense lawyer represented Defendant charged with possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.
Evidence presented to the court showed that on November 22, 2017, Joseph Roberto Major, 33, was arrested at a North Charleston night club after pointing a gun at a woman and threatening to “blow her head off.” Club security restrained Major and recovered a Glock from his waistband. Responding officers searched Major’s car and discovered multiple bags of pills that ultimately tested positive for methamphetamine. Major was also charged with being a felon-in-possession of a firearm in connection with a separate incident at the same club in January of 2017.
On June 23, 2021, Major pleaded guilty to possessing a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking in connection with the November 2017 incident. Major has a long criminal history, which includes prior convictions for distribution of cocaine, possession with intent to distribute cocaine, assault and battery of a high and aggravated nature, unlawful carrying of a pistol, possession of drug paraphernalia, and multiple convictions for disorderly conduct.
United States District Judge David Norton sentenced Major to 156 months in federal prison, to be followed by a five-year term of court-ordered supervision. There is no parole in the federal system.
The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and North Charleston Police Department as part of the joint federal, state, and local Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Program, the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.
Assistant United States Attorney Chris Schoen prosecuted the case.
Outcome: JUDGMENT as to Joseph Roberto Major (1), Count(s) 4ss, The defendant is hereby committed to the custody of the Federal Bureau of Prisons to be imprisoned for a total term of ONE HUNDRED FIFTY-SIX (156) months. The defendant shall pay a $100.00 special assessment fee, due beginning immediately. The court makes the following recommendations to the Bureau of Prisons: The defendant shall be designated to FCI Butner. He shall be screened for enrollment in the Bureau of Prisons 500 Hour Intensive Drug Treatment Program should he become eligible during his period of incarceration. He shall enroll in and complete GED, educational, and vocational programs with the objective of learning and obtaining lawful employment once released from the defendant's term of incarceration. He shall receive credit for time served as to this offense. He shall be allowed to have his medication sent to the facility for which he will be designated. He shall participate in the longest re-entry period as possible. The defendant is remanded to the custody of the United States Marshal. Upon release from imprisonment, the defendant shall be on supervised release for a term of five (5) years. While on supervised release, the defendant shall comply with the mandatory and standard conditions of supervision and the following special conditions. 1. You must participate in a mental health treatment program and follow the rules and regulations of that program. The probation officer, in consultation with the treatment provider, will supervise your participation in the program (provider, location, modality, duration, intensity). 2. You must submit to substance abuse testing to determine if you have used a prohibited substance. 3. You must contribute to the cost of such program not to exceed the amount determined reasonable by the Court approved U.S. Probation Office's "Sliding Scale for Services," and you will cooperate in securing any applicable third-party payment, such as insurance or Medicaid. Count(s) 1, 1s, 1ss, 2s, 2ss, 3s, 3ss, 4s, Dismissed on the Motion of the United States; Signed by Honorable
Plaintiff's Experts:
Defendant's Experts:
Comments: