From The Trussville Tribune staff reports
BIRMINGHAM — A federal judge on Monday sentenced the father of a Huntsville elementary school shooting victim, said U.S. Attorney Jay E. Town.
U.S. District Judge Karen O. Bowdre sentenced Letroy Cole Jr., 41, to 26 months in prison and three years of supervised release, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.
Cole pled guilty in November to the federal charge of being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm. Cole possessed a Kel Tec model P-32 .32-caliber semi-automatic pistol. Cole’s son, a second-grader, found the gun hidden in their home and took it to school to show it to a friend. On Sept. 17, 2018, the second-grader accidentally shot himself while showing the gun to a friend in a restroom at Blossomwood Elementary School.
“Felons in unlawful possession of firearms are not only a threat to all of us when those weapons are illegally in their hands, but made worse when those weapons get into the hands of children,” said Town. “A child was shot and injured with the handgun that Cole illegally possessed. This situation could have been much worse. We are thankful for the efforts of the Madison County District Attorney, Huntsville Police Department, and the ATF in once again assuring the public with this federal prosecution that illegal gun crimes are taken seriously.”
The U.S. Department of Justice said the ATF investigated the case, in partnership with the Huntsville Police Department and the Madison County District Attorney’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert J. Becher Sr. prosecuted the case.