Man gets nearly 17 years for possession of firearm

A Spokane man convicted of being a felon in possession of a firearm was sentenced Friday in U.S. District Court to serve 200 months in prison.

Craig A. Ladwig, 37, received the sentence from U.S. District Court Judge Robert Whaley who ruled the defendant met the definition of an “armed career criminal” because of six prior felony convictions.

Defendants with three or more violent crime convictions face a mandatory minimum of 15 years in prison — 180 months — if they are subsequently caught and convicted of possessing a firearm.

After serving almost 17 years in prison, Ladwig will be under court-monitored supervised release for another five years under the sentence imposed by Whaley.

Ladwig earlier pleaded guilty to possessing a 12-gauge shotgun while he was a passenger in a car stopped in July 2003 by a Spokane Police officer.

The case was referred to a Project Safe Neighborhoods firearms task force which targets gun crimes and repeat offenders.

Ladwig admitted taking the shotgun from his mother’s home and also confessed to stealing a .22-caliber rifle and other items in a separate burglary, said Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephanie Lister who prosecuted the case.

“We are making a very concerted effort at targeting gun crime in order to deliver hard time for gun crime,” said U.S. Attorney Jim McDevitt.

The federal prosecutor said the “Safe Neighborhoods” partnership involving local, state and federal law enforcement agencies “is delivering powerful results.”