Coeur d’Alene Man Sentenced to 46 Months in Federal Prison for Unlawful Possession of a Firearm

COEUR D'ALENE - Shawn Allen Cline, 53, of Coeur d'Alene, was sentenced to 46 months in federal prison for unlawful possession of a firearm, U.S. Attorney Bart M. Davis announced today.

According to court records, Cline is prohibited from possessing firearms due to multiple prior felony convictions. Most recently, in December 2024, Cline was convicted of unlawful possession of a firearm and placed on five years of supervised probation.

One year later, members of the Coeur d'Alene Police Department and Idaho Department of Correction Probation and Parole went to Cline's home in Coeur d'Alene to conduct a probation compliance check. They found him in the garage holding a beer in one hand and a marijuana pipe in the other. Law enforcement searched the home and found a shotgun, a homemade shotgun, methamphetamine, marijuana, drug paraphernalia, and a homemade pipe bomb. Cline admitted to making the pipe bomb and said that he wanted to blow stuff up. Members of the Spokane Bomb Squad responded to the home, rendered the device safe, and confirmed that the device was a lethal pipe bomb.

Chief U.S. District Judge Amanda K. Brailsford also ordered that Cline serve 3 years of supervised release following his prison sentence. Cline will continue to be prohibited from possessing firearms following his conviction.

U.S. Attorney Davis commended the collaborative work of the Coeur d'Alene Police Department; Idaho Department of Correction Probation and Parole; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, which led to the charges. The U.S. Attorney also thanked the Spokane Bomb Squad for protecting the community by decommissioning Cline's pipe bomb. Assistant U.S. Attorney Adam Johnson prosecuted this case.

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