Source: Office of United States Attorneys
GREENVILLE, S.C. — Michael Earl Mashburn, 49, of Travelers Rest, was sentenced to more than seven years in federal prison after pleading guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm.
Evidence presented to the court showed that in the early morning hours of July 2, 2022, the Greenville County Sheriff’s Office was called to investigate reports of a suspicious person at a residence in Travelers Rest. Greenville County deputies responded and found Mashburn sleeping in his car in the homeowner’s driveway. Mashburn woke up and told the deputies he did not know how he arrived at that location. As Mashburn stepped out of the vehicle, deputies observed the handle of a gun protruding from his pocket. Deputies recovered a loaded .38 caliber handgun as well as small amounts of methamphetamine and fentanyl, and placed Mashburn under arrest. At the time of his arrest, Mashburn had previously been convicted of multiple felony offenses, including possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, pointing-and-presenting a firearm, possession of a firearm by a person convicted of a violent crime, failure to stop for blue lights and multiple instances of burglary, larceny, possession of a stolen vehicle, and possession of various drugs.
United States District Judge Henry M. Herlong sentenced Mashburn to 92 months imprisonment, to be followed by a three-year term of court-ordered supervision. There is no parole in the federal system.
This case was prosecuted as 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.
This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives and the Greenville County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Chris Schoen is prosecuting the case.
###