'Career Criminal' Sentenced for Firearm Possession

A 32-year-old Idaho man was sentenced Tuesday in federal court for being a career criminal in possession of a firearm.

Kory Steven Loveland was sentenced to 180 months in federal prison, followed by five years of supervised release.

Loveland, who had at least three prior convictions for 'violent felonies,' was found with a semi-automatic pistol on July 18, 2007 during a traffic stop in Washington County.

A deputy pulled Loveland over for speeding on Interstate 94, but Loveland then lead police on a chase.

Following his arrest, Loveland was identified as the convicted perpetrator of numerous prior crimes, including two counts of burglary in 1996, one count of robbery in 1999, and one count of battery against a correctional officer in 2003. All of those state-level offenses occurred in Idaho, where he was released from prison in 2007. He then fled to Minnesota in violation of his state parole.

After his July 2007 arrest here in Minnesota, Loveland also was identified as the suspect of a violent armed robbery in Minneapolis on June 27, 2007, just three weeks before being arrested for possessing a firearm. In the robbery case, Loveland put a gun to the victim’s head, pistol whipped him from behind, and stole the victim’s watch, wedding band, credit cards, and $600 in cash.

At sentencing, Loveland blamed his crimes on his addiction to methamphetamine.

Following sentencing, he began his term in federal prison.