Department of Justice

United States Attorney Alison J. Ramsdell announced that a Rapid City, South Dakota, man convicted of Possession of a Firearm by a Prohibited Person was sentenced on June 30, 2022, by Chief Judge Roberto A. Lange, U.S. District Court.

Jackson Bissonette, age 31, was sentenced to 24 months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay a $100 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund.

Bissonette was indicted by a federal grand jury on August 20, 2020, and pleaded guilty on March 23, 2022. The conviction stems from Bissonette, a previously convicted felon who is prohibited from possessing firearms, illegally possessing a TriStar Arms, Hunter EX.12 gauge over-under double-barrel shotgun, which was found after Bissonette came into contact with law enforcement in January 2020 in Rapid City.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), 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.

The investigation was conducted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the Black Hills Fugitive Task Force. Assistant U.S. Attorney Benjamin Patterson prosecuted the case.

Bissonette was immediately remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.