Henderson man sentenced to a year on machine gun charge

A Henderson man who fired a machine gun in the backyard of his Anthem home on New Year's Eve in 2010 was sentenced Wednesday to one year and a day in federal prison.

John Mackey, 38, pleaded guilty in May to one count of possession of a machine gun. Under federal law, it is illegal to own a machine gun that is not listed with the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record.

Senior U.S. District Judge Kent Dawson ordered Mackey taken into custody right after Wednesday's sentencing.

"Shooting a firearm, especially a machine gun, in the backyard of a residential neighborhood is very dangerous and could have easily harmed someone," Nevada U.S. Attorney Daniel Bogden said in a statement. "We take these crimes seriously and will prosecute persons who violate federal laws that prohibit the unlawful possession of these types of weapons."

According to prosecutors, Henderson police received a report shortly after midnight on Jan. 1, 2011, that someone had fired an automatic weapon in Mackey's backyard. When officers arrived at the home, Mackey told them he shot a machine gun into the ground and was "not stupid enough to shoot it in the air."

Mackey indicated that there were other firearms in the house and that the machine gun was not registered, prosecutors alleged.

Joseph Riehl, special agent in charge of the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives in San Francisco, said the agency "aggressively" investigates the illegal possession of machine guns.

"Criminal possession and misuse of firearms endangers our communities and will not be tolerated," said Riehl, who oversees the Las Vegas ATF office.

The investigation was conducted jointly by the ATF and Henderson police.

Contact Jeff German at jgerman@reviewjournal.com or 702-380-8135.