Tipton Man Sentenced to Prison for Handling Loaded Firearm While at Work

A convicted felon who loaded and handled a gun while he was working overnight at a business was sentenced December 10, 2020, to more than two years in federal prison.

Michael Joe Meyer, age 29, from Tipton, Iowa, received the prison term after a July 27, 2020 guilty plea to felon in possession of a firearm.

Meyer was observed on a surveillance camera while he was working overnight.  He was seen loading and pointing a firearm towards the door for several minutes.  Meyer was prohibited from possessing a gun because of previous felony convictions for eluding and burglary.

Meyer was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Judge C.J. Williams.  Meyer was sentenced to 27 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.

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. The United States Attorney’s Office has prosecuted this case with support from the following Project Guardian.  For more information about Project Guardian, please see /media/1122011/dl?inline.

Meyer 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 the Tipton Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives. 

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

The case file number is 20-cr-00040.

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