Shreveport Man Pleads Guilty to Illegal Gun Charges

A Shreveport man pleaded guilty in Caddo District Court to gun and drug charges Monday, February 6, 2023, and was sentenced to serve 15 years in prison.

Jhumarcus Chatman, 25, pleaded before District Judge Erin Leigh Waddell Garrett, admitting the offenses that occurred on November 10, 2021.

Chatman pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute the Schedule I controlled dangerous substance marijuana and to possession of a firearm or carrying a concealed weapon by a convicted felon.

On November 10th, 2021, members of the Shreveport Police Department's Violent Crimes Abatement Team, or VCAT, investigated a citizen complaint of narcotics activity in the 100 block of Hamilton Street. Officers observed an illegally parked Chevy Malibu and contacted the driver, Mr. Chatman, when he exited the vehicle. Chatman said the car didn't belong to him, but nervously distanced himself from the vehicle. While conducting a visual inspection of the vehicle, police saw a baggie of what appeared to be marijuana on the front passenger seat, next to an assault-style pistol.

Police ran the car's VIN and found it had been reported stolen. Chatman was arrested and Mirandized. Police found the keys to the stolen car in his front left pocket.

Police also found a second bag of marijuana, a glass jar containing marijuana, digital scales and packaging material.

Post-Miranda, Chatman admitted the marijuana was his for personal use. He denied owning the weapon recovered from the vehicle.

After pleading, Chatman immediately was sentenced by Judge Garrett to 10 years’ hard labor for the drug possession conviction and to 15 years at hard labor without without benefit of probation, parole, or suspension of sentence, and a $1000 fine, for the weapons possession conviction. The fine was converted to 400 days in prison in lieu of costs. The court ordered the sentences to run concurrently with each other, but consecutive to any other sentence he may be serving.

Chatman was prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Ross Owen. He was defended by Hillary Hileman.