United States of America v. Traon Turk

Atlanta, Georgia, criminal defense lawyer represented the Defendant charged with possessing a firearm as a convicted felon and possession of methamphetamine with the intent to distribute.

Traon Turk, an armed felon and drug dealer led police on a car chase in Marietta, Georgia, to avoid being arrests.

On April 4, 2020, the Cobb County Police Department observed an SUV that reportedly had been involved in a drive-by shooting days earlier. When officers attempted to stop the vehicle, the driver, Turk, fled at a high rate of speed, bailed out of the moving car, and left his five passengers behind. While running from the police, Turk dropped a loaded .40 caliber pistol that officers quickly recovered.

About an hour later, the police found Turk hiding in an abandoned vehicle and arrested him. Officers then found a bag of 24 pills containing methamphetamine in his pants pocket. He was also carrying a phone that was replete with evidence of drug dealing activity. In the SUV Turk had been driving, law enforcement located a larger bag of ecstasy pills containing methamphetamine, numerous pieces of pills matching the pills recovered from Turk’s pocket, counterfeit Percocet pills containing methamphetamine, counterfeit Xanax pills, and individually packaged bags of marijuana.

Turk had been previously convicted of numerous felonies in Cobb County, including violation of the street gang terrorism and prevention act, possession of cocaine, methamphetamine, and marijuana with intent to distribute, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, obstruction of law enforcement officers, and theft by receiving stolen property.

Traon Turk, 31, of Austell, Georgia, was sentenced by Senior U.S. District Judge Thomas W. Thrash, Jr. to serve seven years, eight months in prison to be followed by 3 years of supervised release. A federal jury convicted Turk on November 17, 2025, of possessing methamphetamine with the intent to distribute. Turk had previously pleaded guilty on March 12, 2025, to possessing a firearm unlawfully.

This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives and the Cobb County Police Department.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys James Hwang, Michael Herskowitz, Laurel Milam, and former Assistant U.S. Attorney Annalise Peters prosecuted the case.

This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime.

The Defendant was found guilty and was sentenced to 7 years in prison.