Cedar Rapids Man Pleads Guilty to Being a Felon in Possession of a Firearm

A felon who possessed a firearm pled guilty today in federal court in Cedar Rapids. 

Anthony Rush, age 31, from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, was convicted of one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm.  At the plea hearing, Rush admitted that, in May 2020, he knowingly possessed a .380 auto caliber pistol after having been convicted of a crime punishable by more than one year of imprisonment.  According to the indictment, Rush was convicted of attempted burglary in the second degree in Linn County in 2012. 

Sentencing before United States District Court Judge C.J. Williams will be set after a presentence report is prepared.  Rush remains free on bond previously set pending sentencing.  Rush faces a possible maximum sentence of ten years’ imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, and three years of supervised release following any imprisonment. 

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 also part of Project Guardian, the Department of Justice’s signature initiative to reduce gun violence and enforce federal firearms laws.  Initiated by the Attorney General in the fall of 2019, Project Guardian draws upon the Department’s past successful programs to reduce gun violence; enhances coordination of federal, state, local, and tribal authorities in investigating and prosecuting gun crimes; improves information-sharing by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives when a prohibited individual attempts to purchase a firearm and is denied by the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), to include taking appropriate actions when a prospective purchaser is denied by the NICS for mental health reasons; and ensures that federal resources are directed at the criminals posing the greatest threat to our communities.  For more information about Project Guardian, please see /media/1122011/dl?inline.

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

Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.  The case file number is CR 20-62. 

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