Felon Who Pistol-Whipped Victim Pleads Guilty to Federal Gun Charge

A felon who possessed a firearm pled guilty today in federal court in Cedar Rapids. Diago Davis, age 50, from Chicago, Illinois was convicted of one count of possession of a firearm as a felon.

In a plea agreement, Davis admitted that on February 3, 2024, law enforcement officers searched his residence in Hiawatha, Iowa, where they found a firearm that Davis knowingly possessed. Davis has three drug-related felony convictions. In a prior hearing, evidence showed that earlier in the day on February 3, 2024, Davis had pistol-whipped a victim with that same firearm, resulting in the victim falling down several stairs and sustaining injuries.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.

Sentencing before United States District Court Chief Judge C.J. Williams will be set after a presentence report is prepared. Davis remains in custody of the United States Marshal pending sentencing. Davis faces a possible maximum sentence of 15 years' imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, and 3 years of supervised release following any imprisonment.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Devra T. Hake and was investigated by the Hiawatha Police Department.

Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. The case file number is 24-CR-41. Follow us on Twitter @USAO_NDIA.