Beloit Man Sentenced to 42 Months for Possessing a Firearm in a School Zone
MADISON, WIS. – Timothy M. O’Shea, United States Attorney for the Western District of Wisconsin, announced that David Barber, 38, Beloit, Wisconsin was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge William M. Conley to 42 months in prison for possessing a firearm in a school zone. Barber pleaded guilty to this charge on October 12, 2022.
On December 20, 2020, at approximately 2:18 a.m., a Beloit police officer pulled over a silver SUV that Barber was driving for a traffic offense. Barber handed the officer an identification card. The officer noticed a large revolver and open alcohol in the center console and ordered Barber to step out of the vehicle. Barber then drove off fleeing the scene. Officers went to the address listed on Barber’s identification card and located him in his brother’s apartment. In the bathroom cabinet, an officer found a loaded silver Weihrauch .45 Colt revolver. A laboratory analyst found Barber’s DNA on the trigger of the gun. The traffic stop occurred less than 1,000 feet from a school.
At the time of the stop Barber was on federal supervision after being released from prison for a heroin trafficking conviction.
At sentencing, Judge Conley noted that Barber had been serving time and on supervision for criminal convictions since 2001. Judge Conley said that Barber had a history of violating terms of supervision and had been revoked multiple times, and the sentence in this case was designed to hold him accountable and protect the community. Judge Conley sentenced Barber to six months of incarceration on the federal revocation to run consecutive to the 42 months in prison for the gun offense and ordered the gun and the ammunition forfeited. Barber was also ordered to complete an additional two years of supervised release.
The charge against Barber was the result of an investigation conducted by Beloit Police Department and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. The prosecution of the case has been handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Corey Stephan.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.
