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NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans announced today that PALMA JEFFERSON, SR., 64, from Orleans Parish, pled guilty on March 31, 2022 to a one-count superseding bill of information, pursuant to a plea agreement with the government.  JEFFERSON, SR. was originally indicted by a federal grand jury on August 29, 2019.

During a surveillance operation, officers saw JEFFERSON, SR. conduct multiple narcotics transactions.  When police encountered him, he was in possession of a stolen firearm and cocaine.  Also, JEFFERSON, SR. admitted to being a cocaine addict.

JEFFERSON, SR. pled guilty to possession of a firearm while being an unlawful user of or addicted to any controlled substance, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 922(g)(3).  At sentencing, JEFFERSON, SR. faces a maximum sentence of ten (10) years imprisonment, up to a $250,000 fine, up to three (3) years supervised release following any term of imprisonment, and a $100 mandatory special assessment fee, pursuant to Title 18, United States Code, Section 924(a)(2).

This case is being 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.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigations, Homeland Security Investigations, the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office, and the New Orleans Police Department.  It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Melissa Bücher.