Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives

MADISON, WIS. — A federal grand jury in the Western District of Wisconsin, sitting in Madison, returned the following indictment today. You are advised that a charge is merely an accusation and that a defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.

Jayvon E. Jones-Shields, 24, Rochester, Minnesota, is charged with being a felon in possession of a firearm, possessing a loaded firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime and possessing cocaine with intent to distribute. The indictment alleges that on Oct. 18 he possessed a loaded .22 caliber revolver and cocaine with intent to distribute. Jones-Shields was arrested in La Crosse on October 18.

If convicted, Jones-Shields faces a maximum penalty of 15 years in federal prison on the charge of being a felon in possession of a firearm and 20 years on the charge of possessing cocaine for distribution. The charge of possessing a loaded firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime has a mandatory minimum penalty of five years and a maximum of life. Federal law requires that any penalty imposed for the charge of possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime be served consecutive to any other sentence imposed.

The charges against Jones-Shields are the result of an investigation by the La Crosse Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Assistant U.S. Attorney William Levins is handling the prosecution.

This case has been brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), the U.S. Justice Department’s program to reduce violent crime. The PSN approach emphasizes coordination between state and federal prosecutors and all levels of law enforcement to address gun crime, especially felons illegally possessing firearms and ammunition and violent and drug crimes that involve the use of firearms.

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