CHARLESTON, W.VA. — This is an official press release from the U.S. Department of Justice (USAO - West Virginia, Southern), published as received.

CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Tytus Lamaar Shields, 34, of Parkersburg, was sentenced today to four years and three months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, for being a felon in possession of a firearm.

According to court documents and statements made in court, Shields admitted to possessing a Ruger, model LC9, 9mm semi-automatic pistol in his Parkersburg residence on November 22, 2021.

Federal law prohibits a person with a prior felony conviction from possessing a firearm or ammunition. Shields knew he was prohibited from possessing a firearm because of his multiple prior felony convictions, including for trafficking in drugs and engaging in a pattern of criminal activity in the Washington County (Ohio) Court of Common Pleas on October 29, 2014.

Shields has a long criminal history that now includes 16 misdemeanor convictions and 17 felony convictions, including several convictions for drug trafficking offenses in Ohio. Shields was under parole supervision as a result of previous felony convictions in Ohio at the time he possessed the firearm. Parole officers searched his residence and found the firearm while arresting Shields on an Ohio warrant on November 22, 2021.

Today’s sentence will run consecutively to a prison sentence that Shields is currently serving out of Washington County, Ohio.

United States Attorney Will Thompson made the announcement and commended the investigative work of the Parkersburg Narcotics Task Force, the Parkersburg Police Department, the West Virginia Division of Corrections and Rehabilitation, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF).

United States District Judge Joseph R. Goodwin imposed the sentence. Assistant United States Attorney Jeremy B. Wolfe prosecuted the case.

A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia. Related court documents and information can be found on PACER by searching for Case No. 2:21-cr-268.

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