A federal grand jury in Louisville has indicted Craig Smith, a 60-year-old man from Bullitt County, for possessing a firearm as a convicted felon. The indictment was returned on February 4, 2025. U.S. Attorney Michael A. Bennett of the Western District of Kentucky and Acting Special Agent in Charge A.J. Gibes of the ATF Louisville Field Division announced the charges.
According to the indictment, Smith was found with a Smith and Wesson model T/C Compass .308 caliber rifle and ammunition on November 16, 2024. Due to his prior felony convictions, he is prohibited from possessing firearms.
Smith's criminal history includes several convictions: complicity to theft by unlawful taking in Bullitt Circuit Court on April 19, 2018; theft by unlawful taking in Jefferson Circuit Court on October 15, 2007; illegal possession of cocaine in Jefferson Circuit Court on September 12, 2007; and complicity to burglary in Jefferson Circuit Court on January 3, 2006.
Smith appeared before a U.S. Magistrate Judge this week at the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Kentucky. If convicted, he could face up to 15 years in prison. Sentencing will be determined by a federal district court judge based on guidelines and statutory factors.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives is investigating the case with help from the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife and Mount Washington Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Alicia P. Gomez is prosecuting.
This case falls under Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), an initiative aimed at reducing violent crime and gun violence through collaboration between law enforcement agencies and communities.
"An indictment is merely an allegation," officials noted. "All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law."