United States District Judge R. David Proctor, on Tuesday, Jan. 26, sentenced Joshua J. Young of Birmingham to 204 months in federal prison for a carjacking and shooting that occurred in Birmingham in 2019. U.S. Attorney Prim F. Escalona and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives Special Agent in Charge Mickey French announced the sentence in a statement on Wednesday.
Young pleaded guilty in Dec. 2019, to one count of carjacking, one count of discharging a firearm during a crime of violence, and one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm, which is a federal offense.
According to the plea agreement, on Jan. 22, 2019, the carjacking victim gave Young a ride to show him a property that needed painting. During the ride, Young pulled a pistol and demanded that the victim hand over the vehicle as well as all of his money. The victim attempted to flee the vehicle, but Young shot him. Young then drove off in the vehicle.
Individuals at a nearby business found the victim and called an ambulance. The victim survived the shooting. The next day, the Birmingham Police responded to a caller who was following the victim’s vehicle away from the scene of another crime. The BPD officers located the stolen vehicle at a convenience store, with Young in the driver’s seat. A semi-automatic pistol matching the description given by the carjacking victim was found on the driver’s floorboard.
“Carjacking is a senseless act of violence that we will not tolerate in our district,” Escalona said. “I want to thank the Birmingham Police officers for their quick response in apprehending Young. We will continue to work with our federal, state and local law enforcement partners to prevent the unlawful possession of firearms by violent criminals.”
“Removing the criminal element that uses a firearm to facilitate violent crimes such as carjacking is a priority of ATF,” French said. “The partnerships with the public safety departments and the U.S. Attorney’s office were crucial in resolving this case.”
The ATF and the Birmingham Police Department investigated this case, which was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Alan Baty.
