An Iowa City man was sentenced to two years of probation for firing a gun near Iowa City High School in late 2023.
Lawrence Russell, 39, pleaded guilty to possession of a firearm by a felon, a Class “D” felony on Dec. 2. He was sentenced to two years of probation with a five-year suspended prison sentence the next day on Dec. 3. Any further violation of the law would land Russell in prison for five years, with credit for time already served on this charge.
Police responded to reports of shots fired on Nov. 8, 2023, and allegedly located shell casings outside Russell’s residence, only a few blocks east of City High. The incident prompted the high school to enter into its “SECURE mode” protocols, which prohibited students from leaving as scheduled at the end of the school day.
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Investigation uncovers riffle in Russell’s home
Police searched Russell’s apartment and discovered a Mossberg Rifle and photographs of Russell holding the weapon in his living room. Police said that Russell was uncooperative with the investigation and he claimed he had not heard anything.
Russell remains barred from possessing weapons because of two prior convictions in another state.
Russell’s guilty plea and sentence were for a non-habitual felony possession of weapons charge, which carries a lighter punishment than for habitual offenders.
Ryan Hansen covers local government and crime for the Press-Citizen. He can be reached at rhansen@press-citizen.com or on X, formerly known as Twitter, @ryanhansen01.
This article originally appeared on Iowa City Press-Citizen: Iowa City man given 2 years probation for firing shots near school