Marion man gets 15 years for gun charge

A Marion man has been sentenced to 15 years in prison for being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition, U.S. Attorney W. Walter Wilkins said in a press release.

Neil Calvin Johnson, 45, was indicted on the charge in July and faced a life sentence.

On June 11, 2007, Johnson got into an argument with several female residents of a Rosewood Drive apartment complex, retrieved a shotgun from his car and pointed it at them, saying he would shoot anyone who messed with him or his car. One of the women flagged down a Marion police officer who was riding past the complex.

Police arrested Johnson at the complex and found him in possession of a 12-gauge shotgun and shotgun ammunition.

Johnson previously was convicted of burglary in 1997, pointing a firearm at a person in 2003, and assault and battery of a high and aggravated nature in 2004 and in 2006.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Rose Mary Parham of the Florence office prosecuted the case as a part of Project CeaseFire, an initiative of the U.S. Attorneys Office that seeks to aggressively prosecute gun-related and violent crimes.

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the 12th Circuit Solicitor’s Office also investigated this case.