Willie Earl Horsley, 29, and Raven Javay Harris, 25, from Dubuque, Iowa, have each been charged with one count of being prohibited people in possession of a firearm and ammunition. The charges are contained in a Complaint filed on Feb. 16, 2016, in United States District Court in Cedar Rapids.
The Complaint alleges that, on or about Jan. 3, 2016, Horsley and Harris were in possession of a 45 caliber High Point semiautomatic handgun and.45 caliber ammunition. At the time that Horsley and Harris possessed the firearm and ammunition both were users of a controlled substance, specifically marijuana.
The Complaint alleges that on Jan. 3, 2016, at approximately 11:43 p.m., police responded to the residence of Horsley and Harris in, after receiving a 911 call that a shooting had taken place. When police arrived, they discovered that a two-year old boy, J.H., had been shot in an upstairs bedroom. Horsley and Harris were present in the home downstairs.
The Complaint further alleges that later that evening, police obtained a warrant to search the residence. In addition to the firearms and ammunition seized during the execution of the warrant, police also seized from the kitchen a marijuana pipe, a marijuana grinder, and a marijuana bong. Police also seized a blue marijuana pipe from the bedroom shared by Horsley and Harris.
The Complaint also states that during the course of the investigation, both Horsley and Harris made statements to police. The night of the shooting, Horsley stated that he owned the.45 caliber firearm. Harris told police that the.45 caliber firearm belong to both her and Horsley. In subsequent interviews, Harris indicated that she uses marijuana whenever she gets overwhelmed, and had used at approximately 6:00 p.m. the day of the shooting. Horsley admitted to smoking marijuana occasionally, approximately two times per week, and that he had last used marijuana a few days prior to the shooting.
Allegations in the Complaint provide that during the course of the investigation, police obtained hair samples from Horsley and Harris in order to test for the presence of controlled substances. Both samples tested positive for the presence of marijuana.
If convicted, Horsley and Harris each face 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.
“The possession of firearms and ammunition by those prohibited by law represents a serious danger to our communities," said U.S. Attorney Techau. “Prosecuting those individuals who illegally keep firearms and ammunition is a priority of this office and an important part of keeping our communities safe."
Horsley and Harris both appeared on Feb. 17, 2016, in federal court in Cedar Rapids and were held in custody of the United States Marshals Service pending a detention hearing. Their next appearance for their detention hearings is set for Feb. 23, 2016.
As with any criminal case, a charge is merely an accusation and a defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
This case was referred to the United States Attorney’s Office by local authorities and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Lisa C. Williams. The case was investigated by the Dubuque Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol Tabaco and Firearms.
Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.
The case file number is 16-MJ-33
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Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
