Jury finds Williams guilty

A United States federal jury took less than 20 minutes Jan. 10 to convict a former Jasper resident of federal firearms violations.

Williams, 58, was one of seven indicted in July 2004 as a result of a joint investigation by the Beauregard Parish Sheriff's Office, the Jasper County Sheriff's Office and the Federal Bureau of Investigation Drugs and Gang Task Force into a major methamphetamine ring operating in Louisiana and Texas.

The indictment alleges that Williams conspired with co-defendants to possess with the intent to distribute over 500 grams of methamphetamine.

At the time, Williams resided in Dallas and traveled to Jasper to visit his now deceased brother, Corbie Williams. During the conspiracy, Williams brought methamphetamine in one-half to oneounce quantities from Corbie Williams' supplier and one occasion brought methamphetamine from Dallas to Corbie Williams in Jasper.

Williams was personally responsible for dealing with a total of 12 ounces of methamphetamine during the time period of the conspiracy.

Sentencing will be scheduled for a later date to be determined by the court. Williams faced a minimum of 10 years imprisonment, a fine of up to $4 million and a term of supervised release of up to five years.

Sentencing in federal court is determined by the discretion of federal judges and the governing statute. Parole has been abolished in the federal system.

Assistant United States Attorney Larry J. Regan prosecuted the case.