An Imperial man pleaded guilty in federal court on Wednesday to weapons charges related to a pistol that was converted into a fully automatic handgun.
Prosecutors said Ja’Shon Spencer, 22, was in possession of a machine-gun conversion device attached to a Glock semi-automatic pistol on June 16, 2025, otherwise known as a “Glock switch.”
The device allows a user to convert a semi-automatic weapon into one that is fully automatic. Under federal law, both the device and the gun equipped with it are considered illegal machine guns.
U.S. District Judge Mark R. Hornak scheduled Spencer’s sentencing for June 17. He will remain in federal custody pending sentencing. He faces a maximum of 10 years in prison.
Spencer was sentenced to probation in 2022 on a previous weapons charge.
While at West Allegheny High School, Spencer (then 18 years old) was charged with bringing a loaded AR-15 rifle in his car to the school. Police later executed a search warrant and discovered the gun along with a baggie of marijuana in the car.