Prison ordered in weapons case

COEUR d’ALENE — A young man from Bonner County was ordered Tuesday to serve 36 months in prison for unlawfully possessing a firearm, U.S. Attorney Wendy J. Olson announced.

U.S. District Judge Edward J. Lodge also ordered Joshua Christopher Gervasi to serve three years of supervised release following his prison term.

Gervasi, 19, pleaded guilty last December.

Gervasi, according to court records, was stopped by a Bonner County sheriff’s deputy last August for a traffic violation. The deputy asked Gervasi if he had anything illegal in his vehicle and he admitted having a loaded 9-millimeter pistol concealed in his waistband.

Gervasi is prohibited from possessing firearms due to a felony conviction for possessing methamphetamine in 2012.

In addition to the federal weapons offense, Gervasi was charged in Idaho’s 1st District Court with felony drug possession, possession of stolen property and driving without privileges, although those offenses were dismissed, according to the Idaho Supreme Court Data Repository.

Gervasi has been in custody since his arrest, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.

The case was investigated by the sheriff’s office and the North Idaho Violent Crimes Task Force, which includes local sheriff’s and police departments and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The case was prosecuted as part of Idaho’s Project Safe Neighborhoods Program, which seeks to reduce gun violence in Idaho.