A US District Court on Wednesday sentenced a Boulder man who possessed a firearm while being prohibited from doing so due to previous felony convictions to 78 months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release.
Paul Anthony LaFournaise, 59, was found guilty of prohibited person in possession of a firearm in December 2024, stemming from a May 2024 incident.
Chief U.S. District Judge Brian Morris presided over the sentencing in a Great Falls court, according to a press release from U.S. Attorney Kurt Alme’s office. The government presented evidence that LaFournaise had multiple previous felony convictions and is thus prohibited from using, owning, possessing, transferring, or controlling firearms.
On May 11, 2024, after LaFournaise’s sister found a gun in her brother’s bag, along with drug paranephelia, she hid the bag. LaFournaise later returned home from work to discover his bag was missing. His sister soon reported to the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office that her brother was threatening family members at their home.
Her account was later corroborated by another brother and their mother. The Monitor spoke to LaFournaise’s mother, who declined to comment at this time.
Todd Johnson, who had served time with LaFournaise at the Butte Pre-Release Center after a previous felony conviction, told police he had lent LaFournaise the KelTec 9mm handgun because he said he needed it “for protection” when getting drugs.
LaFournaise was ultimately arrested for partner or family member assault. When interviewed by law enforcement, he admitted he’d received the gun from Johnson and was holding on to it, despite being aware of his prohibition.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office prosecuted the case and the investigation was conducted by the ATF, Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office, and the Montana Probation and Parole Office. The case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence.
