Charleston Man Sentenced For Federal Firearms Charge
Thursday, January 9, 2025, 4:30 P.M. ET. 2 Minute Read, By Art Fletcher: Englebrook Independent News,
CHARLESTON, W.VA.- On Wednesday, January 8, 2025, Thomas McNeil Hedrick II, 36, of Charleston, West Virginia, appeared in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia and was sentenced by Chief U.S. District Court Judge Thomas E. Johnston to 71 months in federal prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release for his conviction of being a Prohibited Person in Possession of a Firearm.
According to U.S. Attorney Will Thompson and charging documents filed with the District Court, on November 26, 2023, Hedrick entered a Shrewsbury, West Virginia residence looking for his girlfriend armed with a Ruger AR-556 semi-automatic rifle loaded with a 60-round drum magazine and equipped with a bipod.
While inside the residence, Hedrick, while arguing and demanding that his girlfriend leave with him, continued to point the rifle at his girlfriend and others inside the residence.
Hedrick Knew He Was Prohibited From Possessing The Rifle
During his plea allocution, Hedrick admitted that he knew he was prohibited from possessing firearms and that he concealed the loaded rifle under his jacket as he entered and then left the residence. Hedrick further admitted that surveillance video at the residence captured his actions on that date.
Federal law prohibits an individual with a prior felony conviction from owning or possessing a firearm and ammunition. Hedrick knew he was a prohibited person due to his previous felony conviction for wanton endangerment in Kanawha County Circuit Court in March of 2022. Hedrick has a criminal history that also includes convictions for domestic assault, violation of a protective order, possession of a controlled substance, and being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm.
U.S. Attorney Will Thompson commended the investigative work of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives and the Kanawha County Sheriff’s Office for the successful prosecution of Hedrick.
