Department of Justice

SAVANNAH, Ga. — Newly returned indictments in the Southern District of Georgia include felony charges for illegal firearms possession and drug distribution, while additional defendants have been sentenced to federal prison or await further proceedings after pleading guilty to federal gun charges. 

The cases are prosecuted as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods in collaboration with federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies, including the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and the FBI, to reduce violent crime with measures that include targeting convicted felons who illegally possess guns.

“As a new year begins, we renew our determination to remove guns from the hands of those who are prohibited from possessing them,” said Jill E. Steinberg, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia. “Felons and firearms don’t mix, and it’s vital to public safety that we keep them separated.”  

In the past five years, more than 800 defendants have been prosecuted in the Southern District of Georgia for firearms offenses – most often for possessing a firearm after conviction for a previous felony. That charge carries a statutory penalty of up to 15 years in prison, and there is no parole in the federal system.

Those indicted during the December and January terms of the U.S. District Court Grand Jury include:

• Eric Massey, 29, and Unique Haynes, 26, both of Jacksonville, Fla., charged with Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute and to Distribute Methamphetamine, Cocaine and Fentanyl. Haynes also is charged with Possession with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine, Cocaine and Fentanyl; Possession of a Firearm in Furtherance of a Drug Trafficking Crime; and Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon. The arrests in the case occurred in Augusta as a result of an investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office, with assistance from the Georgia State Patrol.
• Lynwood Forrest Burke, 60, of Dearing, charged with Possession with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine, and Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon.

All indicted defendants are considered innocent unless and until proven guilty.

Defendants recently adjudicated on federal firearms charges include:

• William Beau Devore, 21, of Martinez, was sentenced to 102 months in prison and fined $2,000 after pleading guilty to Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon. Columbia County sheriff’s deputies arrested Devore in January 2022 after a burglary determined that he was illegally in possession of five guns.
• Zion Howard, 23, of Augusta, was sentenced to 80 months in prison after pleading guilty to Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon. Richmond County sheriff’s deputies found Howard in possession of a pistol while investigating a reported shooting.
• Isaac Wilford Stewart, 24, of Augusta, was sentenced to 37 months in prison and fined $1,500 after pleading guilty to Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon. Waynesboro police officers found a pistol in Stewart’s wrecked vehicle after he fled from an attempted traffic stop in October 2022.
• Joquan K. Clark, 25, of Waynesboro, was sentenced to 30 months in prison and fined $1,500 after pleading guilty to Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon. Waynesboro police officers responding to a domestic dispute arrested Clark after finding a pistol in his pocket.
• Marquese Shavel Palmer, 30, of Collins, was sentenced to 46 months in prison and fined $1,500 after pleading guilty to Possession of Marijuana with Intent to Distribute, and Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon. Palmer was indicted along with 31 other defendants as part of an alleged drug trafficking conspiracy in multiple Georgia counties. Investigators who searched Palmer’s residence found drugs, firearms, ammunition, and Gangster Disciples documents and paraphernalia.
• Jovonn Courtney Stokes, 26, of Springfield, was sentenced to 85 months in prison and ordered to pay restitution after pleading guilty to three counts of Interference with Commerce by Robbery and one count of Use of a Firearm in Furtherance of a Crime of Violence. Stokes brandished a handgun while robbing two Chatham County convenience stores and an Effingham County convenience store in November and December 2022.
• Tyrone Dion Lyons Sr., 39, of Augusta, was sentenced to 50 months in prison and fined $1,000 after pleading guilty to Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon. Richmond County deputies and U.S. Marshals found a pistol in Lyons’ vehicle while serving a warrant for his arrest on Gwinnett County charges.  
• Tori Davis, 33, of Savannah, was sentenced to 90 months in prison after pleading guilty to Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon, and Possession of Oxycodone and Fentanyl with Intent to Distribute. Garden City police found drugs and a loaded handgun in his vehicle during a traffic stop. 
• Michael Floyd, 31, of Garden City, was sentenced to 77 months in prison and fined $5,000 after pleading guilty to Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon. A special-duty Savannah police officer found Floyd carrying a pistol in his waistband while inside Savannah’s Oglethorpe Mall.
• Calvin Polite, 36, of Savannah, was sentenced to 37 months in prison after pleading guilty to Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon. Savannah police officers found a pistol in Polite’s possession while investigating a report of shots fired in a Savannah neighborhood.
• David Wayne Cleland, 34, of Ridgeland, S.C., was sentenced to 33 months in prison after pleading guilty to Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon. Garden City police officers investigating a suspicious vehicle in a motel parking lot found Cleland asleep in the car with a handgun in his lap.
• Robert Sanders, 66, of Hephzibah, was sentenced to 12 months and one day in prison and fined $1,000 after pleading guilty to Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon. Fort Eisenhower military police questioned Sanders after finding him fishing in an unauthorized area at the installation and discovered a pistol in his vehicle.
• Steve Shontell Heath, 46, of Hephzibah, was sentenced to 46 months in prison after pleading guilty to Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon. A Burke County sheriff’s deputy found a pistol in Heath’s vehicle during a traffic stop. 
• DeShawn Tisdale, 24, of Savannah, was sentenced to 18 months in prison after pleading guilty to Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon. Savannah police officers found a pistol in Tisdale’s vehicle while investigating a trespassing call at a Savannah residence.
• Tommy Cowart, 60, of Statesboro, awaits sentencing after pleading guilty to Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon. Bulloch County deputies arrested Cowart after finding a rifle in his car during a traffic stop.
• Dennis Mitchell, 51, of Brunswick, awaits sentencing after pleading guilty to Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon. Brunswick police officers found Mitchell in possession of a gun during a July 2022 traffic stop in which he was a passenger in the vehicle.  
• Jamell Williams, 44, of Savannah, awaits sentencing after pleading guilty to Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon. Savannah police officers investigating reports of shots fired near a motel determined Williams was in possession of a rifle.
• Karron L. Shuman, 36, of Savannah, awaits sentencing after pleading guilty to Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon. Savannah police found a pistol in Shuman’s vehicle during a November 2022 traffic stop.
• Hunter W. Taylor, 26, of Hephzibah, awaits sentencing after pleading guilty to Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon. Richmond County deputies investigating reports of gunfire in May 2022 charged Taylor after determining he possessed a rifle.   
• Jaques B. Pope, 32, of Savannah, awaits sentencing after pleading guilty to Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon. Savannah police officers investigating gunshots in November 2022 determined Pope had been in possession of a pistol.
• Zachary Smith, 26, of Savannah, awaits sentencing after pleading guilty to Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon. Savannah police officers investigating a February 2022 reported robbery took Smith into custody when he was shot after pointing a pistol in the direction of a police officer.

The cases are being prosecuted for the U.S. by the Southern District of Georgia U.S. Attorney’s Office.

Under federal law, it is illegal for an individual to possess a firearm if he or she falls into one of nine prohibited categories including being a felon; illegal alien; or unlawful user of a controlled substance. Further, it is unlawful to possess a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking offense or violent crime. It is also illegal to purchase – or even to attempt to purchase – firearms if the buyer is a prohibited person or illegally purchasing a firearm on behalf of others. Lying on ATF Form 4473, which is used to lawfully purchase a firearm, also is a federal offense. 

For more information from the ATF on the lawful purchasing of firearms, please see: https://www.atf.gov/qa-category/atfw-form-4473.

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