On Friday, Jan. 11, 2013, brothers Rocky Houston, 52, and Leon Houston, 54, both of Ten Mile, Tenn., were arrested on federal firearms charges. Agents and officers from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF), Roane County Sheriff’s Office, and other local law enforcement agencies executed arrest and search warrants at the Houston family property located in Roane County, Tenn., announced William C. (Bill) Killian, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Tennessee, Carl Vasilko, Acting Special Agent in Charge, ATF, and Jack Stockton, Sheriff of Roane County.
Rocky Houston has been charged with being a convicted felon in possession of firearms, and Leon Houston has been charged with possession of firearms while being an unlawful user of controlled
substances. Upon conviction, each faces up to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000. Both appeared before the Honorable Bruce Guyton, U.S. Magistrate Judge in Federal Court on Monday, Jan. 14, 2013, for an Initial Appearance.
The Houston brothers were acquitted of murder in the shooting deaths of a Roane County deputy and a ride-along partner in 2006.
Court documents stated that the ATF installed a camera on a public utility police to prove Rocky Houston possessed guns illegally after being convicted of a felony. When the ATF went to serve search warrants at the Houston property, Leon Houston was armed with two rifles and admitted smokng “wacky tobacco” (marjuana) when he drove a four-wheeler to meet the officers. That admission and the discovery of drug paraphernalia in the mobile home, resulted in charges against him as well.
In Court Monday, Rocky Houston yelled at the judge, ordering him to recuse himself. He also argued his rights were violated.