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Father of Lamar HS shooter sentenced to 6 years in prison for gun crime

John Edward Porter, 50, was charged in March and pleaded guilty in May to being a felon in possession of a firearm.

ARLINGTON, Texas — Editor's note: The video published above is a WFAA report from August about a judge delaying the trial for the 15-year-old shooter.

The father of a 15-year-old suspected of killing one student and injuring another at Arlington's Lamar High School in March has been sentenced to six years in federal prison on charges connected to the shooting. 

John Edward Porter, 50, was charged in March and pleaded guilty in May to being a felon in possession of a firearm. 

U.S. District Judge Mark Pittman sentenced Porter on Thursday to 77 months in federal prison.

On the day of the shooting, a criminal complaint detailed, Arlington police executed a search warrant for Porter's apartment and found a revolver, a Glock and a rifle in Porter's bedroom. Officers later seized a shotgun found near the shooting at the high school, and a records trace revealed that a relative of Porter had bought the shotgun. 

According to court documents, Porter confirmed while talking with police that he lived at the apartment officers searched, and that he had a handgun in the apartment.

An additional investigation showed that Porter had tried to buy a firearm from a licensed dealer in 2014 and 2020, but was denied due to his prior felony convictions.

In August, a judge delayed the trial for the teen accused in the high school shooting. Attorneys for the accused shooter raised constitutional questions about the 15-year-old's ability to sit through the trial. The judge ordered a psychiatrist to evaluate the minor, who would determine whether the teenager could effectively communicate with his attorneys -- a key protection offered by the U.S. Constitution. 

Pending that the judge decides the case can continue, opening arguments for the teen's trial are set to begin on Sept. 18.

A new pool of potential jurors will be called to handle the next proceedings. 

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