Gonzales man convicted on gun and drug charges

GONZALES — A Gonzales man was found guilty Wednesday of illegally using a weapon while in possession of drugs.

Kendall Thompson, 25, 2724 S. Burnside Ave., was convicted by a 12-member jury on charges stemming from an incident that occurred in January 2010, according to a news release from the 23rd Judicial District Attorney’s Office.

Ascension Parish sheriff’s deputies were dispatched to the former Star’s Entertainment Teen Club off La. 44 in Prairieville on Jan. 17, 2010, to disperse a large crowd at closing time.

While en route, they were informed of a shooting in the parking lot.

Upon their arrival at the club, the deputies noticed a lengthy line of cars attempting to leave the club and a large crowd gathered in the parking lot.

They also noticed a white Ford Taurus driven by Thompson fleeing the scene.

Thompson led deputies in a chase that exceeded 100 mph along La. 933, where deputies temporarily lost sight of the Taurus. As they continued pursuing, deputies located the vehicle crashed in a ditch with Thompson crawling out of the vehicle.

Deputies found Thompson in possession of a bag of marijuana, and a search of his vehicle uncovered a .357-caliber Magnum revolver.

Thompson admitted to being under the influence of marijuana, shooting into the ground to disperse a fight and fleeing the out of fear, prosecutors said.

Thompson faces between 10 and 20 years in prison.

without the possibility of parole. He was remanded to the Ascension Parish Jail in lieu of a $150,000 bond. Sentencing is scheduled for Oct. 3.