Man who brought firearm near Capitol sentenced to 2 years in prison

Ahmir Lavon Merrell, 22, was sentenced Wednesday to two years in prison for bringing a gun to the grounds of the Capitol last fall.

Merrell pleaded guilty in April to one count of illegal receipt of a firearm, after he brought an AR-style pistol and 73 rounds of ammunition to the Capitol in November 2023, the Department of Justice (DOJ) said.

“In addition to the prison sentence, U.S. District Court Judge Christopher R. Cooper today ordered Merrell to serve three years of supervised release,” the DOJ’s statement said.

A citizen approached a U.S. Capitol Police officer on Nov. 7 to report a man who appeared to be holding a gun on Capitol grounds.

Capitol Police officers arrived at the park across from Union Station and demanded Merrell drop the gun. When he refused, Capitol Police said one officer used a stun gun on the man. He fell to the ground and was arrested.

Original reporting said Merrell was born in Atlanta, but Merrell’s legal team said he moved back and forth between Georgia and Washington, D.C., with his mother.

At the time of his arrest, Capitol Police said Merrell had a warrant for a probation violation out of Georgia.

Before he was tased by Capitol Police, Merrell said “words to the effect of ‘[for] you to get this gun from me, you are going to have to kill me,’” the DOJ said.

“Straightforward as this case may appear at first blush, however, in many ways this is a unique gun possession case. The facts and circumstances clearly show that Mr. Merrell did not possess a firearm in order to commit any other crimes,” said A.J. Kramer, Merrell’s public defender. “He did not possess it to threaten or harm anyone. Tragically, the only person he wanted to harm that day was himself.”

Kramer said Merrell welcomes the opportunity to receive mental health treatment during his supervised release period. They originally sought a 12 month and one day sentence.

“We are proud of our police officers who quickly responded and safely stopped a man with a loaded gun from getting near the Congressional Buildings,” Assistant Chief of Police for Uniformed Operations Sean Gallagher said in a statement to The Hill. “This arrest, including the strong investigative work by our Special Agents, is a great example of the work that our brave women and men do day in and day out to keep the Capitol Grounds safe.”

Updated at 3:57 p.m.