Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A Kansas City, Mo., man was sentenced in federal court today for illegally possessing a firearm during a shooting at a local nightclub.

Dana McCoy, 53, was sentenced by U.S. Chief District Judge Beth Phillips to seven years in federal prison without parole.

On Oct. 25, 2021, McCoy pleaded guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm. This is McCoy’s third federal conviction for being a felon in possession of firearms; he was on federal supervised release at the time of this offense.

According to court documents, Kansas City police officers responded to the Rendezvous Lounge, 11816 Blue Ridge Blvd., at approximately 1:50 a.m. on March 14, 2021. Officers observed numerous vehicles with damage, with many shell casings on the street and sidewalk area in front of the nightclub. Officers also contacted a victim, identified in court documents as “A.J.,” who had a gunshot wound to the face and was transported to the hospital by emergency medical service. A.J. was unable to give a statement to law enforcement prior to being intubated.

Officers learned that a fight had broken out at the club, with the club’s security attempting to control the situation by spraying pepper spray into the crowd. During the commotion, gunfire started going off. A witness told officers that McCoy was standing by one of the club doors and shooting towards the parking lot, where several people were fleeing to escape the gunfire. The witness saw McCoy give a pistol to another person. Another witness, who also saw McCoy shooting a firearm, recorded a cell phone video that showed McCoy standing near the door of the lounge, holding a firearm.

McCoy admitted that he shot a firearm and gave it to another person, but could not identify the firearm. When officers searched the other person, they found a Glock .45-caliber handgun and a Smith and Wesson .40-caliber handgun.

Under federal law, it is illegal for anyone who has been convicted of a felony to be in possession of any firearm or ammunition. McCoy has two prior felony convictions for being a felon in possession of a firearm, and prior felony convictions for burglary, stealing, armed robbery on a military post, tampering with a motor vehicle, and the distribution, manufacturing or possession of a controlled substance,

This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Maureen A. Brackett. It was investigated by the Kansas City, Mo., Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

Project Safe Neighborhoods

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), 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. 

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