A Pittsfield man who was alleged to have pointed a rifle at family members during an argument earlier this month has been sentenced to prison.
33-year old Victor B. Stephens pleaded guilty to aggravated domestic battery with strangulation, two counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, and two counts of possession of a firearm by a felon in Pike County Circuit Court on Wednesday.
Stephens was arrested on the evening of January 4th by Pittsfield Police after a reported violent domestic incident at a home in the 300 block of Curtis Street in Pittsfield. According to a press release by Pittsfield Police Chief Michael Starman, the caller said that Stephens had pointed a rifle at family members during the altercation, and that Stephens threatened to shoot law enforcement upon arrival to the home. Officers responded to the area and observed Stephens loading guns and ammunition into a car.
Stephens was then taken into custody after three officers and a canine unit converged on the vehicle. A loaded SKS style rifle and a shotgun was located in the passenger seat at the time of the arrest. Stephens was currently on parole from the Illinois Department of Corrections for a previous conviction on domestic assault and illegal possession of a firearm at the time of his arrest.
Stephens was sentenced on Wednesday to 7 years in the Illinois Department of Corrections and ordered to pay an undisclosed county fine. He was given credit for 27 days served in the Pike County Jail.