U.S. Department
of Justice
Elgin Man Charged With Possession of a Firearm While an Unlawful User of Marijuana
Daniel Henriksen, 29, from Elgin, Iowa, has been charged with one count of possessing a firearm while an unlawful user of marijuana. The charge is contained in a complaint unsealed today in United States District Court in Cedar Rapids.
The complaint alleges that, on or about June 17, 2016, law enforcement officers and emergency medical personnel responded to Henriksen’s home in Elgin after receiving a 911 call reporting that a four-year old boy had shot himself in the head. Once at the residence, they located a child suffering from a gunshot wound to his head. The child was transported to Palmer Lutheran Hospital in West Union, Iowa, where he was later pronounced dead.
The complaint also alleges that during the investigation of the child’s death, investigators determined that Henriksen was the owner of the firearm used in the shooting, which was a Glock 36, .45 caliber handgun. During a search of Henriksen’s residence, officers seized several items of drug paraphernalia, including marijuana smoking devices. Several of these items were analyzed at the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation Criminalistics Laboratory and tested positive for marijuana.
If convicted, Henriksen faces a possible maximum sentence of 10 years’ imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, $100 in special assessments, and three years of supervised release following any imprisonment.
Henriksen appeared today in federal court in Cedar Rapids and was released on bond. Henriksen’s next appearance for an arraignment will be set at a future time.
As with any criminal case, a charge is merely an accusation and a defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Lisa C. Williams and was investigated by the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation and the Fayette County Sheriff’s Office.
Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.
The case file number is 17-MJ-120.
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