Judge sentences Bobb'e J. Thompson to 30 months on gun charge

Bobb'e J. Thompson, a former child actor best known as Stanley on That's So Raven, was sentenced Wednesday to 30 months in federal prison for possession of a firearm by a felon, after officers found a loaded stolen handgun in his backpack during an Iowa traffic stop.

U.S. District Judge Leonard T. Strand imposed the sentence in Sioux City and ordered three years of supervised release to follow the prison term, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Iowa. Thompson pleaded guilty to the charge on April 28, 2026, and returned to court on Wednesday for sentencing.

Thompson is 30 and lives in Kansas City, Missouri. He was held by the U.S. Marshals Service after the hearing, awaiting transfer to a federal correctional facility, and prosecutors did not name the facility or say when the move would happen.

What the traffic stop found

Law enforcement clocked a vehicle Thompson was driving at 104 mph in a 70 mph zone in Cerro Gordo County, Iowa, on Sept. 22, 2025, federal prosecutors said. Officers stopped the car, and Thompson was arrested.

When the officer approached the vehicle during the stop, Thompson and a passenger were seen switching seats. The officer also noted the smell of marijuana coming from the car.

A search of the vehicle uncovered a backpack belonging to Thompson. It held multiple bags of marijuana bought from a dispensary and a .40-caliber handgun that was fully loaded, with a 15-round magazine and a round already in the chamber.

Authorities determined that the handgun had been reported stolen from a vehicle in Kansas City, Missouri, the city where Thompson lives.

A record before Iowa

Federal prosecutors pointed to Thompson's earlier convictions when the sentence was announced. His criminal history includes a 2020 conviction for battery with serious bodily injury, a 2020 conviction for assault with force and a 2022 conviction for prohibited possession of a firearm. The case decided on Wednesday turned on his possession of a firearm as a convicted felon.

The federal gun conviction is the most serious legal outcome of a career that began when Thompson was a child.

The Iowa State Patrol, the Cerro Gordo County Sheriff's Department and the Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement investigated the case. The prosecution was brought by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Iowa, which announced the sentence on Sept. 16, 2026, the day it was handed down.

There is no parole in the federal prison system, a point the U.S. Attorney's Office made in announcing the 30-month term.

What Thompson disputed

Thompson disputed the officer's account that he and his passenger switched seats during the stop. The announcement did not say whether the passenger faced any charge.

Thompson resolved the case by plea rather than by trial, admitting a single federal count of possession of a firearm by a felon. Wednesday's hearing in Sioux City was the last step in the district court.

The sentencing has renewed attention on what becomes of some child stars in adulthood, and on former Disney Channel, Nickelodeon, film and sitcom actors who have faced arrests, criminal charges, probation, jail time or court supervision after early fame.

Orlando Brown, known for That's So Raven, has had years of publicized legal problems that included arrests connected to domestic disputes, narcotics possession allegations, trespassing incidents and court-related violations. He has spoken about his struggles with substance abuse and homelessness.

Anneliese van der Pol, another actor from That's So Raven, pleaded no contest after a 2006 drunken-driving arrest and was sentenced to probation, fined and ordered to complete an alcohol education program.

Credits from a child career

Thompson appeared in 10 episodes of That's So Raven as Stanley, the neighborhood character known for turning up around Raven Baxter's home, and later appeared in the spinoff Cory in the House. His other television credits include 30 Rock, MTV's Wild 'N Out and Tyler Perry's House of Payne. In film he played Ronnie Shields in Role Models and appeared in Fred Claus, Shark Tale and Me and Earl and the Dying Girl.

Thompson's work as an adult

Thompson began acting as a child and remained a working actor into 2026, when he appeared in the film Funny Thing About Love. He is also a rapper.

The Justice Department's announcement of the sentence identified Thompson both as an MTV star and as a former childhood actor.

Where the case goes next

Thompson will remain in federal custody until he is transferred to a correctional facility, and his supervised release will begin once the prison term is complete. Thirty months is two and a half years.

Shia LaBeouf, who rose to prominence on Even Stevens, was sentenced in June 2026 after pleading guilty to three counts of simple battery over a Mardi Gras altercation in New Orleans. He previously faced arrests in Georgia and New York, and was the subject of a civil lawsuit brought by the singer FKA twigs that was later settled out of court.

Adam Hicks, from Zeke and Luther and Lemonade Mouth, faced armed robbery charges in California in 2018, was sentenced to five years in prison in 2021 and was paroled in March 2022 after being credited for time served. Mitchel Musso, who played Oliver on Hannah Montana, was arrested in Texas in 2023 on public intoxication and theft-related allegations, and the key charges were later dismissed.

Amanda Bynes faced multiple driving-related cases between 2012 and 2014, among them a drunken-driving arrest, hit-and-run allegations and charges connected to driving on a suspended license.

Drake Bell pleaded guilty in 2021 to attempted child endangerment and disseminating material harmful to juveniles, and a court sentenced him to two years of probation and 200 hours of community service. Thompson, for his part, remains in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service while he waits to be transferred to a federal facility. SAMHSA runs a free, confidential helpline at 1-800-662-4357, and anyone in crisis can call or text 988.