Former Disney Channel child star Bobb’e J. Thompson is headed to federal prison after a high-speed traffic stop in Iowa led police to a loaded handgun that authorities say had been stolen from a vehicle hundreds of miles away.
Thompson, 30, best known to many viewers as the sharp-tongued Stanley on That’s So Raven, was sentenced to 30 months in federal prison after pleading guilty to possession of a firearm by a felon.
U.S. District Judge Leonard T. Strand handed down the sentence in Sioux City, Iowa. Thompson will also be required to serve three years of supervised release after leaving prison, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Iowa.
The case began with what authorities described as an extreme speeding violation.
On September 22, 2025, law enforcement officers in Cerro Gordo County spotted a vehicle being driven by Thompson traveling 104 mph in a 70-mph zone, federal prosecutors said.
When an officer stopped the vehicle and began approaching it, authorities say Thompson and his passenger switched seats.
Officers also reported smelling marijuana coming from inside the vehicle.
A search followed, and investigators said they discovered a backpack belonging to Thompson containing several bags of marijuana purchased from a dispensary.
But prosecutors said officers found something far more serious inside the bag — a fully loaded .40-caliber handgun.
The weapon had a 15-round magazine inserted and another round already in the chamber, according to federal authorities. Investigators later determined that the handgun had previously been reported stolen from a vehicle in Kansas City, Missouri.
Thompson ultimately faced a federal charge of possessing a firearm as a convicted felon.
A federal indictment was filed against him on January 15, 2026, according to court records. He appeared before Chief U.S. Magistrate Judge Kelly K.E. Mahoney on April 28 and pleaded guilty to the single count.
Judge Strand formally accepted that guilty plea in May after no objections were filed to the magistrate judge’s recommendation.
Thompson’s previous criminal record was particularly important because federal law generally prohibits people convicted of qualifying felonies from possessing firearms.
According to the Justice Department, his criminal history includes a 2020 conviction for battery with serious bodily injury and another 2020 conviction for assault with force that could result in great bodily injury.
He was also convicted in 2022 of prohibited possession of a firearm.
Those convictions meant that Thompson was already legally barred from possessing the handgun found during the Iowa traffic stop, prosecutors said.
The dates are worth noting because some early reports about Thompson’s case have grouped the convictions together. The Justice Department’s official account specifically places the battery and assault convictions in 2020 and the prohibited-firearm conviction in 2022.
The investigation involved the Iowa State Patrol, Cerro Gordo County Sheriff’s Department and Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement. Assistant U.S. Attorney Ron Timmons prosecuted the case.
Thompson remains in U.S. Marshals Service custody while awaiting transfer to a federal prison.
Unlike the traditional parole system still used in some states, federal prisoners sentenced under the modern federal system do not receive parole. Thompson will instead serve his sentence subject to applicable federal credits and release rules before beginning his three years of court-ordered supervision. The Justice Department specifically noted that there is no parole in his case.
The prison sentence marks a dramatic turn for an actor who became recognizable to millions of young television viewers.
Thompson appeared as Stanley on That’s So Raven and later built a long list of television and movie credits. His work included appearances on 30 Rock, Tyler Perry’s House of Payne and MTV’s Wild ‘N Out.
On the big screen, he played Ronnie Shields alongside Seann William Scott and Paul Rudd in the 2008 comedy Role Models and later appeared in Me and Earl and the Dying Girl.
But nearly two decades after his rise as a child performer, Thompson will now be entering federal prison following a case that began with a speeding vehicle and ended with investigators finding a loaded stolen handgun in his backpack.
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