Chadwick M. Elgersma, United States Attorney for the Western District of Wisconsin, announced on Mar. 27 that Leo Lacey, age 48, from Eau Claire, was sentenced by Chief U.S. District Judge James D. Peterson to 64 months in federal prison for possessing a firearm and ammunition as a convicted felon. Lacey had pleaded guilty to the charge on January 5, and his sentence will be followed by three years of supervised release.
Lacey was barred from legally possessing firearms and ammunition due to previous felony convictions. Authorities said that on May 21, Lacey arranged for codefendant Garrett Waldinger to illegally purchase a Taurus 9mm handgun for him. The following day, someone reported that Lacey had threatened them with a handgun.
According to the announcement, an Eau Claire police officer attempted a traffic stop on May 23 after receiving information about the gun offense involving Lacey. He initially stopped but then fled from police at high speed before crashing into another vehicle and running away on foot. Officers later found Lacey and recovered the handgun purchased by Waldinger.
At sentencing, Judge Peterson said that "Lacey is dangerous" and stated "the primary goal of the sentence in this case was to protect the public." Codefendant Garrett Waldinger pleaded guilty to straw purchasing the firearm and is scheduled for sentencing on April 1.
The investigation was conducted by the Eau Claire Police Department and the ATF Madison Crime Gun Task Force with prosecution led by Assistant U.S. Attorney Corey Stephan.
The charges are part of Operation Take Back America, described as an initiative using resources from multiple Justice Department programs including Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN), aiming to address illegal immigration issues as well as violent crime.
