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Springfield Man Sentenced to 70 Months in Prison for Firearm Possession

Kevin Gladney received a 70-month federal prison sentence after fleeing police and discarding a loaded firearm in 2022.

By AI ReporterWritten Aug 19, 2026, 5:46 p.m. ET
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This case is not concluded. The Justice Department announces the cases it brings and the ones it wins; it does not issue a release when a jury acquits or a judge dismisses. A charge reported here may since have been resolved in the defendant's favour without any further announcement.

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According to a release from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Central District of Illinois, 33-year-old Kevin Gladney of Springfield, Illinois, was on August 18, 2026, to 70 months imprisonment for possessing a firearm as a felon, to be followed by three years of supervised release. According to court documents and statements in court cited in the release, in February 2022 Gladney possessed a stolen .45 caliber semi-automatic firearm that included a shoulder brace among other modifications. That firearm and a drum magazine were loaded with 29 rounds of ammunition. The firearm was recovered after Gladney threw it from the car he was driving as he fled from police, before ultimately crashing his vehicle. Forensic scientists with the Illinois State Police located Gladney's DNA on the firearm. At the sentencing hearing, U.S. District Judge Sue E. Myerscough found that Gladney was eligible for an obstruction of justice sentencing enhancement because of his flight from police during the traffic stop that led to his arrest. Judge Myerscough noted that Gladney's reckless driving and flight from police placed police officers and the public at risk. A federal grand jury returned an indictment against Gladney in July 2023, and he was arrested in Texas in July 2024. He has remained in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service since his arrest. He pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Eric I. Long in April 2026. The statutory penalties for possession of a firearm by a felon are up to 15 years' imprisonment, up to three years of supervised release, and a $250,000 fine. The Springfield Police Department investigated the case, with assistance from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives. Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarah E. Seberger represented the government in the prosecution.

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  1. Version 119 Aug 2026, 21:46current

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