A Houston man was sentenced in federal court Thursday on federal firearms charges stemming from shots fired outside a Lake Charles nightclub in 2018.

U.S. District Judge James D. Cain Jr. sentenced Jarvis Pierre, 38, to 29 years in prison, followed by three years of supervised release, on those charges. He was found to be an armed career criminal based upon his criminal history and his sentence is a reflection of that enhancement, according to Vicki T. Chance, a spokesperson with the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

Pierre was found guilty by a federal jury after a week-long trial in May 2021 of two counts of possession of a firearm and ammunition by a convicted felon and one count of possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.

Evidence introduced at the trial revealed Pierre was stopped by law enforcement officers on two occasions for traffic violations.

On Oct. 7, 2018, deputies with the Calcasieu Parish Sheriff’s Office responded to a shots fired call outside of the Cloud 9 night club in Lake Charles. When deputies arrived, the crowd began to disburse and many patrons left the parking lot. Deputies observed a vehicle that remained in the parking lot with the driver acting suspiciously. Law enforcement officers followed the vehicle once the driver left the parking lot and observed the vehicle drift from the lane of travel several times and conducted a traffic stop.

Pierre was the driver of the vehicle and as deputies approached the vehicle, they detected a strong odor of marijuana coming from inside. After a search of Pierre’s person, deputies found large amounts of cash, and a brown, powdery substance which was determined to contain heroin and fentanyl. While searching the vehicle further, deputies found a loaded FN57 handgun under the driver’s seat, as well as a loose 5.7mm round of ammunition, a rolled marijuana cigarette, and a baby bottle containing promethazine. Memo books containing writing that was determined to be prices for different amounts of narcotics with names and addresses were also found in the vehicle. The amount of cash found on Pierre’s
person and in the vehicle totaled over $11,000.

When Pierre was stopped by Calcasieu Parish Sheriff’s Office deputies for a traffic violation on Dec. 27, 2018, they found him to have a loaded handgun between the driver’s seat and center console of his vehicle, along with marijuana on his person and in the vehicle, and two cellular phones. Deputies said Pierre had an active warrant out of Texas stemming from a traffic stop in February 2018 in Pearland, Texas, by officers with the Pearland Police Department. During the Pearland stop, law enforcement officers found a loaded 9mm handgun, over 400 oxycodone pills and $11,629 in cash, as well as four cellular telephones.

Pierre has previous felony convictions for possession of cocaine with intent to distribute (2001); distribution of cocaine (2002); and aggravated assault with a firearm (2013). It is illegal for individuals with a prior felony conviction to possess a firearm or ammunition.

The case was investigated by the ATF and Calcasieu Parish Sheriff’s Office and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Daniel J. Vermaelen, John W. Nickel and J. Luke Walker.