On February 20, 2024, in the Southern District of Texas, Earnest Taylor Jr. was sentenced to 15 months of imprisonment, three years’ supervised release, and ordered to pay $200 in penalties after he plead guilty to two counts of aiding and abetting assault on Federal officers.  

On August 24, 2021, two agents with the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation were attempting to serve a summons for aggravated identity theft charges issued through the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky. As the federal agents approached Taylor’s residence in Houston, Texas, they observed a truck leaving the location. The agents followed the truck, which was operated by Taylor, and observed it take evasive action. The agents abandoned the surveillance.  When the agents returned to Taylor’s residence, he fired several gunshots at the Federal agents’ vehicle. 

Taylor’s criminal history includes conviction for a crime punishable by imprisonment for a term exceeding one year. As a convicted felon, Taylor was unlawfully in possession of a firearm.  

Source: The facts in this case narrative come from the following publicly available documents: S.D. Tex. Judgement filed Feb. 20, 2024; S.D. Tex. Plea Agr. filed Dec. 6, 2023; and S.D. Tex. Indict. filed Sep. 16, 2021