Judge orders forfeiture of gun used in Mobile New Year’s Eve shooting

MOBILE, Ala. (WALA) - A federal judge on Friday granted a prosecution request to order a gun used in a New Year’s Eve shooting downtown.

Thomas Earl Thomas Jr., 22, pleaded guilty last month to possession of an illegally modified firearm. The .40-caliber Glock pistol was outfitted with a device that turned it into a machine gun. Thomas also faces murder and first-degree assault charges related to the shooting on Dauphin Street. He has claimed self-defense.

Under the preliminary order issued Friday by Chief U.S. District Judge Jeffrey Beaverstock, anyone claiming an ownership interest in the gun will have 60 days to contest the forfeiture. The order will become final when the judge sentences Thomas in July. He faces up to 10 years in prison.

JaTerious Reives died during the shooting. According to police, Thomas and another man who exchanged gunfire suffered injuries, as did seven innocent bystanders.

Thomas awaits a decision by a grand jury on whether to indict him on the murder and assaults charges.

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