BRUNSWICK, GA. | A former Savannah firearms dealer will serve 15 years in prison for illegally possessing guns that he sold to people he believed to be members of a militia organization that wanted to overthrow the government.

The sentence that Chief U.S. District Judge Lisa Godbey Wood imposed on David J. Gould, 38, was more than five years longer than that called for in advisory guidelines, but Gould agreed to the longer sentence when he pleaded guilty in June to five counts of a 20-count federal indictment.

The guidelines called for a sentence of eight years, 10 months to nine years, nine months, and Gould’s appointed attorney, Stephanie R. McDonald reminded Wood, "It’s a unique sentencing."

Gould agreed to that unique sentence because had the government not agreed to drop the most serious charge in exchange for his guilty plea, he was facing a mandatory life sentence had he been convicted of possessing a machine gun in the commission of a crime.

As it was, he pleaded guilty to two counts each of illegally possessing a machine gun and distributing marijuana and one count of carrying a firearm in the commission of a crime.

In arguing for a lighter sentence, McDonald said Gould illegally used his hobby of making and firing guns to commit a crime, but with an underlying good reason.

"He made a poor decision with an altruistic motive," she said, "to make money for his son’s college tuition."

Gould said much the same to Wood when he spoke just before sentencing.

Gould told Wood he was ashamed and that he had embarrassed a lot of people. "I let my son down. I’m not going to be able to see him graduate next year," he said.

In explaining his motivation, Gould said he "didn’t have a lot growing up," and ended up with a lot of debt from student loans and didn’t want that for his son.

"I’d do anything for my son," Gould said, "but what I did was wrong."

McDonald also told Wood that Gould was an addict who had used marijuana daily for most of his adult.

She acknowledged he sold the machine guns to agents who posed as members ofa homegrown-militia group. "They seemed like guys how liked to party and shoot guns."

He sold the guns to agents in Savannah and Brunswick.

She also said Gould helped investigators in a federal case in Ohio. She also said he is gratified no one was hurt and that when he made the deals the buyers did not make a threat to any particular individual.

Assistant U.S. Attorney E. Greg Gilluly, Jr. provided some details that McDonald left out including the undercover agents told Gould their goal was to overthrow the government.

"He emphasized that the firearms were completely untraceable with no manufacturer’s stamp … short-barrelled with no serial number," Gilluly said.

Gould also offered to supply the undercover agents with semi-automatic weapons and with 10 pounds of marijuana a week, he said.

And Gilluly touched on a few crimes committed with automatic weapons, saying the government is thankful the guns weren’t used to shoot up a nightclub, a school or to overthrow the government.