Cedar Rapids Man Charged with Being a Prohibited Person in Possession of a Firearm

Clyde Bell, age 40, of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, has been charged with being a prohibited person in possession of a firearm.  The charge is contained in an Indictment unsealed on October 29, 2021, in United States District Court in Cedar Rapids.  

The Indictment alleges that, in October 2020, Bell possessed a pistol while being a prohibited person.  The Indictment alleges that Bell previously was convicted of two felonies, that he previously was convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence, and that he was an unlawful user of marijuana, cocaine, and MDMA. 

If convicted, Bell faces a possible maximum sentence of 10 years’ imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, and three years on supervised release following any imprisonment. 

Bell appeared for a detention hearing today in federal court in Cedar Rapids and was released on bond.  Bell’s next appearance for trial is set for January 3, 2022.

As with any criminal case, a charge is merely an accusation and a defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty. 

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. 

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Mark Tremmel and is being investigated by the Cedar Rapids Police Department, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation. 

Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.  The case file number is CR 21-46. 

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