A man who unlawfully possessed a firearm was sentenced today to six years in federal prison.
Donald Hunt, Jr., age 32, from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, received the prison term after a July 27, 2021, guilty plea to one count of possession of a firearm by a prohibited person.
At the guilty plea, Hunt admitted that on April 2, 2021, he knowingly possessed a firearm, a Smith & Wesson .40 caliber handgun, as a prohibited person. Hunt was prohibited from possessing a firearm because (1) he had previously been convicted of a felony: Intimidation with a Dangerous Weapon; (2) he was an unlawful user of cocaine and marijuana; (3) he was subject to a state court order restraining him from harassing, stalking, or threatening an intimate partner; and (4) he had previously been convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence: Assault (Domestic Abuse). On April 2, 2021, police officers observed Hunt park his car on a Cedar Rapids street. After Hunt saw the police drive by, he got out of the car and walked up to a house where he placed plastic bags on the porch. Police Officers then arrived and placed Hunt under arrest on outstanding state charges. When officers retrieved the bags from the porch, they discovered a loaded handgun along with clothing belonging to Hunt. Officers also found a small quantity of marijuana and crack cocaine which Hunt admitted using.
Hunt was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Judge C.J. Williams. Hunt was sentenced to 72 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.
Hunt 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 Daniel C. Tvedt and investigated by the Cedar Rapids Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).
Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.
The case file number is 21-CR-35.
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