Man Sentenced To Seven-1/2 Years For Gun Possession In Furtherance Of Drug Trafficking
BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- A 36-year-old man was sentenced Friday to 7-1/2 years in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release for his conviction of possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking, according to a statement from the office of the U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland.
When James Dorsey was pulled over in Baltimore on April 23, 2020, for suspected fraudulent tags during a traffic stop, a Baltimore Police officer smelled marijuana coming from the vehicle. Dorsey did not have a driver's license but did have an outstanding warrant for his arrest. The statement did not indicate what the warrant was for.
Police searched Dorsey before arresting him and found marijuana. When police searched his vehicle, they found a plastic bag with empty vials, three cell phones, two vials containing cocaine, 45 gel caps containing fentanyl and tramadol, a burned cigar containing marijuana, and a loaded .38-caliber semiautomatic handgun.
Dorsey later made several calls from jail "in which he said as he was being pulled over, he 'hurried up' and put 'that stuff' in the glove compartment so he could 'beat' the criminal charges," the statement said.
As part of the plea, he admitted he intended to sell and distribute the drugs and he knowingly possessed the gun in furtherance of drug trafficking, according to the statement.
