Columbia Man Pleas Guilty to Possessing Firearm as Felon

A 44-year-old Columbia man pleaded guilty Wednesday in federal court to being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition. 

Michael Rell Osborne, a convicted felon, was arrested on March 21 after Columbia police officers found a loaded Astra .40-caliber firearm in his front pants pocket, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office. 

Officers charged Osborne with disorderly conduct and public drunkenness the previous day, March 20, after responding to a domestic disturbance at an apartment on Marlboro Street, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.

The same woman involved in the domestic disturbance called police again on March 21 after seeing Osborne near her apartment, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office. Officers found Osborne sitting alone in a car on River Drive. When they patted him down, they found the gun.

Osborne is prohibited under federal law from possessing firearms and ammunition because he has prior state felony convictions and a prior federal conviction for being in possession of a firearm.        

Osborne's prior state convictions include two counts of second-degree burglary, grand larceny and criminal domestic violence, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.

In 2006, Osborne was convicted federally of being a felon in possession of a firearm and was sentenced to 18 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office. On March 21 - four days after his supervised release ended - Columbia police arrested him for being a felon in possession of a firearm.

Osborne faces a maximum of 10 years imprisonment and/or a fine of $250,000 on the felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition charge. U.S. District Judge Joseph F. Anderson, Jr. of Columbia accepted Osborne's guilty plea and will impose a sentence after he has reviewed the pre-sentence report, which will be prepared by the U.S. Probation Office.