Brandished the Gun During a Traffic Stop in Dubuque, Resulting in a Nearby Elementary School Being Locked Down
A man who had previously been convicted of multiple felony offenses, including a conviction for being a felon in possession of a gun, was sentenced today to more than six years in federal prison for once again unlawfully possessing a gun.
Robert Dettbarn, age 26, from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, received the prison term after a Sept. 27, 2018 guilty plea to possessing a firearm as a felon.
Information from a plea agreement and at sentencing showed that on May 22, 2018, Dettbarn was a passenger in car that was stopped by Dubuque police. During the stop, Dettbarn got out of the car holding a loaded handgun, which was pointed at an officer. Officers ordered Dettbarn to drop his gun, but he ignored the orders and pointed the gun in the air. He then walked away from officers and pointed the gun at his own head. He was near Fulton Elementary and officers called to have the school locked down. After approximately two hours of negotiations, Dettbarn surrendered to officers.
Dettbarn was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Judge C.J. Williams. Dettbarn was sentenced to 80 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.
Dettbarn 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 Anthony Morfitt and investigated by the Dubuque Police Department.
Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.
The case file number is 18-CR-1032.
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Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
