Dad gets 21 months after boy’s carjack attempt

PORTLAND — A federal judge has sentenced a Portland father to 21 months in prison for being a felon in possession of a firearm in a case in which the man’s then-11-year-old son used the loaded gun in an attempted carjacking.

U.S. District Judge Marco Hernandez took the opportunity of Wednesday’s sentencing to tell Joseph Charlton what he thought of the man’s parenting skills.

In the judge’s words, “The most important function of a parent is being a role model. By example, you are failing.”

The Oregonian reports that Charlton confessed to police that he kept the loaded handgun in the glove box of his truck, and his son had gotten it without his permission.

The boy earlier pleaded guilty in juvenile court to robbery and harassment and was given probation. Charlton’s lawyer says the boy is in foster care.

In December 2012, the child used the .22-caliber Derringer to threaten a woman sitting in a pickup truck in a church parking lot. She refused to give up her truck and wallet, drove away and called police.