Convicted Felon Who Unlawfully Possessed a Gun Sentenced to Over Two Years in Federal Prison

A man who possessed a gun despite being legally prohibited was sentenced September 20, 2021, to more than two years in federal prison.

John Michael Dockery, age 37, from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, received the prison term after an April 1, 2021 guilty plea to possession of a gun by a prohibited person.

At the guilty plea, Dockery admitted possessing a firearm following two felony convictions from California and while he was an unlawful user of methamphetamine.  Dockery was a passenger in a vehicle that was stopped in Cedar Rapids and a gun was found in the back of vehicle behind Dockery’s seat.

Dockery was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Judge C.J. Williams.  Dockery 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.         

Dockery 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 Emily K. Nydle and investigated by Cedar Rapids Police Department. 

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

The case file number is 20-CR-80.

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