PORTLAND — A Durham man admitted Wednesday to having a gun after he was barred from doing so due to an earlier domestic violence conviction.
Richard Leblond, 51, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court to a charge of possession of a firearm by a prohibited person, a felony punishable by up to 15 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.
A deputy from the Androscoggin County Sheriff’s Office served Leblond with a temporary protection from abuse order at his home in Durham on April 9, according to prosecutors.
As part of the order, Leblond was required to hand over any guns in his possession.
Leblond told the deputy that he had several guns and OK’d a search of his home, prosecutors said.
During the search, investigators found more than a dozen handguns, pistols, rifles and shotguns, all of which were recovered from two gun safes inside Leblond’s home, prosecutors said.
Because Leblond had been convicted in 2009 in Lewiston of misdemeanor domestic violence charges, he wasn’t legally allowed to have any guns.
No sentencing date has been set.
Comments are not available on this story. Read more about why we allow commenting on some stories and not on others.
We believe it's important to offer commenting on certain stories as a benefit to our readers. At its best, our comments sections can be a productive platform for readers to engage with our journalism, offer thoughts on coverage and issues, and drive conversation in a respectful, solutions-based way. It's a form of open discourse that can be useful to our community, public officials, journalists and others.
We do not enable comments on everything — exceptions include most crime stories, and coverage involving personal tragedy or sensitive issues that invite personal attacks instead of thoughtful discussion.
You can read more here about our commenting policy and terms of use. More information is also found on our FAQs.
Show less