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Press Release

Cedar Rapids Man Sentenced to Over Four Years in Federal Prison for Possessing Guns and Drugs

For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, Northern District of Iowa
Was a drug user with no criminal history

A Cedar Rapids man, responsible for possessing multiple guns while being under the influence of marijuana, was sentenced today to 50 months in prison.

Cameron Jay Burgess, age 29, from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, received the prison sentence after pleading guilty to possession of a firearm by a drug user.

Information disclosed at sentencing and at his plea hearing showed that in February 2020, law enforcement executed a search warrant at Burgess’ residence in Cedar Rapids.  During their search, officers located and seized seven firearms and three high capacity magazines.  The firearms, which consisted of handguns and shotguns, were located in different areas throughout his residence.  Officers also seized over 4 grams of cocaine, approximately 38 grams of hash oil, approximately 92 grams of hashish balls, 25 THC cartridges, approximately 147 grams of marijuana, drug paraphernalia, and drug packaging materials.  Burgess admitted that he intended to distribute some or all of the THC and marijuana.  Burgess also admitted that he was a daily marijuana user and also used cocaine.   

Burgess was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Judge C.J. Williams.  Burgess was sentenced to 50 months’ imprisonment.  He was ordered to make payment of $100 to the special assessment fund.  He must also serve a three-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Ashley Corkery and investigated by the Cedar Rapids Police Department, the Linn County Sheriff’s Office, the Drug Enforcement Administration, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives. 

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.

Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl

The case file number 20-CR-67.

Follow us on Twitter @USAO_NDIA.

Updated June 24, 2021

Topics
Project Safe Neighborhoods
Firearms Offenses