DISTRICT ATTORNEY VANCE ANNOUNCES SENTENCING OF RAPPER “JA RULE” TO TWO YEARS IN STATE PRISON

Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance, Jr., today announced the sentencing of JEFF ATKINS, a/k/a “Ja Rule,” 35, to two years in state prison for possessing a loaded firearm on July 22, 2007, on the Upper West Side. The defendant pleaded guilty on December 13, 2010 to one count of Attempted Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Second Degree.

“Carrying an illegal gun in New York City puts the safety of all New Yorkers at risk,” said District Attorney Vance. “Whether you are a Grammy-nominated musician or a teenager carrying a gun for a friend, justice is blind. This sentence should put all illegal gun owners in New York on notice.”

District Attorney Vance thanked Assistant District Attorney Joan Illuzzi-Orbon, Senior Trial Counsel, Trial Bureau 80, and Chief of the Hate Crimes Unit, who prosecuted this case with the assistance of Assistant District Attorney Melissa Sussman.

Defendant Information:

JEFF ATKINS, D.O.B. 2/29/1976

Upper Saddle River, NJ

Convicted:

* Attempted Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Second Degree, a class D felony, one count

Sentence:

* 2 years in state prison

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