HARRISBURG — This is an official press release from the U.S. Department of Justice (USAO - Pennsylvania, Middle), published as received.
HARRISBURG - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that Donald Jackson, age 36, of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, was sentenced to 15 years’ imprisonment on February 11, 2022, by U.S. District Court Judge Jennifer P. Wilson for possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking.
According to United States Attorney John C. Gurganus, on June 19, 2018, Harrisburg Bureau of Police offers stopped a vehicle in which Jackson was a passenger. Jackson exited the vehicle and fled on foot. An officer observed Jackson carrying what he believed to be a firearm and another officer saw Jackson discard the item in a trash can. Officers took Jackson into custody and found inside the trash can a black purse which contained marijuana, plastic baggies, and a digital scale. Underneath the purse, officers recovered a Ruger 9mm pistol with an obliterated serial number. During a search of Jackson and the vehicle, ecstasy, marijuana, and crack were also recovered.
The Harrisburg Bureau of Police and the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General Mobile Street Crimes Unit investigated the case with assistance of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Assistant U.S. Attorney Scott Ford prosecuted the case.
This case was also 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.
# # #
