MADISON, WIS. - Scott C. Blader, United States Attorney for the Western District of Wisconsin, announced that Jason Ressel, 43, of Eau Claire, Wisconsin, was sentenced yesterday by U.S. District Judge James Peterson to 18 years in federal prison for possessing methamphetamine with intent to distribute. This term of imprisonment will be followed by five years of supervised release. Ressel pleaded guilty to this charge on May 17, 2018.
On Sept. 27, 2017, officers arrested Ressel at his parole officer’s office. Officers searched his car and found 134.4 grams of methamphetamine in a cylinder attached to the car frame.
On that same date, officers executed a search warrant at Ressel’s residence. In the home, officers found approximately 525.9 grams of methamphetamine, 9.2 grams of marijuana, 2.4 grams of cocaine,.4 grams of crack cocaine, and $2,952.
Based on his three prior felony drug convictions and his extensive criminal history, Judge Peterson concluded Ressel was a career offender in the true sense of the word. Judge Peterson also said that because Ressel was resistant to supervision and had not been readily amenable to treatment opportunities in the past, the public needed protection from Ressel for a substantial period of time.
The charge against Ressel was based on an investigation by the West Central Drug Task Force with the substantial assistance of the Eau Claire County District Attorney's Office. The West Central Task Force is comprised of investigators from the Eau Claire, Menomonie, and Chippewa Falls Police Departments; Sheriff’s Departments from Eau Claire, Dunn, Chippewa, Clark, and Buffalo Counties; Wisconsin Department of Justice Division of Criminal Investigation; and UW-Eau Claire and UW-Stout Police Departments. The prosecution of the case has been handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Elizabeth Altman.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
