United States of America v. Blake Christopher Basten

Springfield, Missouri criminal defense lawyer represented the Defendant charged with unlawful transport of firearms.



In the summer of 2022, law enforcement officers twice encountered Blake Basten unlawfully possessing a firearm as a convicted felon. During the second encounter, Basten and his companion sought to evade law enforcement in their car,

twice striking the officer's vehicle with their car before speeding off. A high-speed chase through a residential area ensued, during which Basten fired several rounds from a 9mm-caliber pistol out the car window before he and his companion collided with another vehicle. Basten proceeded to flee on foot and hide under a vehicle until a police K9 located and bit him. Basten later admitted to law enforcement that he possessed the pistol and shot rounds to get rid of evidence.



Through a separate indictment for each incident, a grand jury indicted Blake Basten with two counts of unlawfully possessing a firearm as a felon in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(1). Basten pled guilty to both offenses. At sentencing, the district court1 calculated an advisory range of 37 to 46 months of imprisonment under the United States Sentencing Guidelines (Guidelines). Several enhancements were included in the Guidelines calculation because Basten possessed multiple firearms during the charged offenses, see U.S.S.G. § 2K2.1(b)(1)(A), committed a state felony offense by firing a gun out of a vehicle, see U.S.S.G. § 2K2.1(b)(6)(B), and recklessly created a substantial risk of death or serious injury in the course of fleeing from police officers, see U.S.S.G. § 3C1.2.

Defendant sentenced to FBOP for 60 MONTHS on Count 1 of the Indictment, to run consecutive to the sentence imposed on 22-3133-01-CR-S-BCW, for a total of 120 MONTHS. Upon release from imprisonment the defendant shall be placed on SUPERVISED RELEASE for 3 YEARS, to be served concurrently with the term of supervised release imposed in case number 22-3133-01-CR-S-BCW. Mandatory, Standard and Special Conditions of Supervised Release imposed. Upon defendants request, the Court recommends the defendant be designated to a facility for participation in the 500-hour residential substance abuse treatment program and UNICOR program. The Court also recommends the Defendant be designated to Greenville FCI for participation in their programs. Special Assessment: $100; Fine: waived. Defendant is remanded into custody of USMS.