Department of Justice

SOUTH BEND –Briana S. Williams-Heard, 24 years old, of Gary, Indiana, was sentenced by United States District Court Chief Judge Jon E. DeGuilio after pleading guilty to making false statements in connection with the acquisition of firearms, announced United States Attorney Clifford D. Johnson.

Williams-Heard was sentenced to 1 year probation with 12 months home detention.

According to documents in the case, in 2020 Williams-Heard bought three handguns from two federally licensed firearm dealers which she then gave to a convicted felon gang member. Williams-Heard falsely reported to police that one of those guns was stolen, and that gun was subsequently found in the possession of the felon gang member.

This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives with the assistance of the Michigan City Police Department.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Frank E. Schaffer and Geovanny E. Martinez.

This case was prosecuted as part of the joint federal, state, and local Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Program, the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts.  PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime.  Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them.  As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

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