A convicted felon who unlawfully possessed a gun he attempted to hide while running from police was sentenced today to more than two years in federal prison.
Ryan Matthew Willis, age 24, Dubuque, Iowa, received the prison term after a September 13, 2021 guilty plea to one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm.
Information from the sentencing hearing showed that, on January 30, 2021, Willis was the passenger in a car driving in Dubuque. Law enforcement attempted to stop the car. The car then led law enforcement on a high-speed chase. The car eventually stopped and three people, including Willis, got out and attempted to flee on foot. While running from the police, Willis stashed a loaded handgun under a tarp. Law enforcement officers found the gun a short time later.
Willis has a lengthy criminal history. He has convictions for aggravated unlawful use of a weapon, possessing drugs, providing false identification, disorderly conduct, theft, criminal mischief, and interference with official acts causing bodily injury. The interference with official acts conviction resulted after Willis ran from law enforcement officers. The officers had to tackle Willis to stop him from running. Two officers received injuries as a result.
Willis was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Judge C.J. Williams. Willis was sentenced to 30 months’ imprisonment. He must also serve a three-year term of supervised release after the prison term. There is no parole in the federal system.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN). PSN is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.
Willis is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until he can be transported to a federal prison.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Ashley Corkery and investigated by the Dubuque Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives.
Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.
The case file number is 21-CR-1021.
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