A 22-year-old Savannah man was sentenced Monday to 162 months in federal prison for possessing a firearm as a convicted felon and a related drug offense.
The U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia’s office announced Charles Starks received the punishment from Senior U.S. District Court Judge B. Avant Edenfield after he was classified a career offender under the federal sentencing guidelines based on previous convictions including burglary, obstruction, drug trafficking and weapons charges.
Evidence gathered during the investigation showed Starks distributed marijuan to a juvenile female while in possession of a stolen, loaded .38 caliber revolver, Durham said.
Starks’ case, prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Carlton R. Bourne, was part of Project Ceasefire, a joint federal, state and local firearms initiative involving the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the Chatham County District Attorney’s Office, the ATF and the Savannah-Chatham police, said First Assistant United States Attorney James D. Durham.
“Project Ceasefire is an effective program designed to remove from our streets previously convicted felons who, after their initial release from confinement, continued to engage in criminal activity by using and carrying firearms,” U.S. Attorney Edward Tarver said in a prepared statement. “The career path chosen by this very young defendant is extremely unfortunate. Because of his multiple felony convictions, he has qualified for designation into an exclusive category known as the career offender. Felons with guns, serve hard time, for a long time.”