Elmwood man sentenced for being a felon with a gun
MADISON — A 35-year-old Elmwood, Wisconsin man was sentenced on Thursday, December 1 for being a felon in possession of a firearm.
John W. Vaudreuil, United States Attorney for the Western District of Wisconsin, announced that U. S. District Judge James Peterson sentenced Benjamin Winters, of Elmwood, to six years in prison. He was given credit for 17 months for time spent in state custody on a revocation sentence related to this charge.
Winter pleaded guilty to this charge on July 18, 2016.
On August 23, 2014, Eau Claire police officers attempted to stop a vehicle being driven by Winters. Winters failed to stop and fled the scene. Following a short chase, Winters abandon the vehicle and fled on foot. The car was searched and inside the vehicle, officers found a .22 caliber pistol, which Winters later admitted to possessing.
Winters requested a sentence of probation, but Judge Peterson declined that request based in part on the defendant’s lengthy criminal history. Because the defendant has committed violet crimes in the past, Judge Peterson determined that the need to protect the public was important.
The charges against Winters was the result of an investigation conducted by the Eau Claire County, Dunn County and Chippewa County Sheriff’s Offices, the Eau Claire Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosive. Assistant U.S. Attorney Elizabeth Altman has handled the prosecution of this case.
