Yellowhammer Times

A Foley resident, Jabari Maliek Stots, 28, has been sentenced to eight years in federal prison for illegally possessing a firearm as a convicted felon. The sentencing follows an incident on November 19, 2024, when Stots led Baldwin County Sheriff’s deputies on a high-speed chase in a stolen vehicle through the Mills area of Foley.

Court documents state that deputies attempted to stop the stolen vehicle driven by Stots. Instead of stopping, he accelerated and reached speeds exceeding 100 miles per hour. He ignored stop signs and traffic lights in residential neighborhoods and narrowly avoided several vehicles. Deputies used a “pit” maneuver to bring the pursuit to an end, after which Stots fled on foot carrying a pistol.

A deputy fired at Stots after seeing him turn toward a tracking K-9 with the pistol still in his hand; the shot did not strike him. Deputies and the K-9 continued their pursuit through waterlogged fields. Despite repeated commands to drop his weapon, Stots resisted arrest until he was bitten by the K-9 and apprehended by deputies.

After his arrest, law enforcement found methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia in the stolen vehicle. A diver from Daphne Search and Rescue recovered the .22 caliber pistol that Stots had discarded during his flight. Recorded jail calls revealed that Stots admitted to possessing and discarding the firearm while fleeing from deputies. At that time, he had prior felony convictions for breaking and entering a motor vehicle, burglary, and aggravated cruelty to animals—making it illegal under federal law for him to possess any firearm.

United States District Judge Terry F. Moorer sentenced Stots to 96 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release with conditions including drug testing and mental health evaluation or treatment. No fine was imposed; however, Judge Moorer ordered $100 in special assessments and forfeiture of Stots’s pistol.

U.S. Attorney Sean P. Costello of the Southern District of Alabama announced the sentence.

The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives along with the Baldwin County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Justin Roller prosecuted.

This prosecution is part of Operation Take Back America—a Department of Justice initiative focused on combating illegal immigration, dismantling cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and addressing violent crime using resources from Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) as well as Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).