Tallahassee felon convicted, sentenced for unlawful gun possession (DOJ)

Tallahassee, Florida - Nathan Taylor Porter, 21, of Tallahassee, Florida, was sentenced after a federal conviction for two counts of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. The sentence was announced by John P. Heekin, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.

U.S. Attorney Heekin said: "This felon's repeated offenses demonstrated his brazen disregard for the law and posed a threat to the safety of our community. My office remains committed to safeguarding our citizens against the predations of dangerous criminals, like this defendant, and we will continue to aggressively prosecute these cases until our residents get the safe, crime-free streets that they deserve."

A federal investigation revealed that on October 17, 2025, law enforcement located a loaded .40-caliber pistol in Porter's backpack during a search. Porter admitted ownership of the firearm. At the time that Porter possessed the firearm, he was a convicted felon and was legally prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition. While he was awaiting trial in state court for his unlawful firearm possession, Porter was caught with another firearm on March 14, 2026.

Porter was sentenced to 51 months' imprisonment followed by three years of Supervised Release at the United States Courthouse in Tallahassee by District Judge Allen C. Winsor.

The case was jointly investigated by Homeland Security Investigations, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, the Tallahassee Police Department, and the Leon County Sheriff's Office. Assistant United States Attorney Joseph A. Ravelo prosecuted the case.

This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime.

The United States Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Florida is one of 94 offices that serve as the nation's principal litigators under the direction of the Attorney General. To access public court documents online, please visit the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of FloridaLinks to other government and non-government sites will typically appear with the "external link" icon to indicate that you are leaving the Department of Justice website when you click the link. website. For more information about the United States Attorney's Office, Northern District of Florida, visit https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndfl.