Week in Review—South Bend

SOUTH BEND, IN—The United States Attorney’s Office announced the following activity in federal court:

Pleas:

• Bryant Rios, 25, of South Bend, Indiana, pled guilty before Magistrate Judge Christopher A. Nuechterlein to the felony offense of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. Magistrate Nuechterlein is recommending that the district court accept the tendered guilty plea. Parties have 10 days in which to object to the magistrate judge’s recommendation. Sentencing set for November 13, 2013. This charge was filed as a result of an investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Donald Schmid.
• Abdul Shabazz, 37, of South Bend, Indiana, pled guilty before Magistrate Judge Christopher A. Nuechterlein to the felony offense of unlawful transport of firearms. Magistrate Nuechterlein is recommending that the district court accept the tendered guilty plea. Parties have 10 days in which to object to the magistrate judge’s recommendation. Sentencing set for November 13, 2013. This charge was filed as a result of an investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Donald Schmid.
• Ruben Fernandez, 31, of Cassopolis, Michigan, pled guilty before Magistrate Judge Christopher A. Nuechterlein to the felony offense of participating in a conspiracy to distribute cocaine. Magistrate Nuechterlein is recommending that the district court accept the tendered guilty plea. Parties have 10 days in which to object to the magistrate judge’s recommendation. This charge was filed as a result of an investigation by the Drug Enforcement Agency. Sentencing set for October 31, 2013. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney William Grimmer.

If convicted in court, any specific sentence to be imposed will be determined by the judge after a consideration of federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.

Dispositions:

• Kristopher Brooks, 40, of Elkhart, Indiana, was sentenced by District Judge Robert L. Miller, Jr. to 46 months’ imprisonment and five years of supervised release after pleading guilty to the felony offense of failing to register as a sex offender. According to documents filed in this case, in 1993, Brooks was convicted of assault with intent towards sexual penetration. As a convicted sex offender, Brooks is required to register with local law enforcement when he relocates. After moving to Indiana, Brooks failed to register. This case was the result of an investigation by the U.S. Marshals Service. This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney John Maciejczyk.
• James Braun, 68, of South Bend, Indiana, was sentenced by District Judge Jon DeGuilio to 63 months’ imprisonment and 10 years of supervised release after pleading guilty to the felony offense of possession of child pornography. According to documents filed by the government in this case, Braun admitted that he possessed a computer that contained approximately 81 digital images and eight videos that depicted minors that had not yet reached 12 years of age engaged in sexually explicit conduct. This case was the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Indiana State Police. This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney John Maciejczyk.
• Dale Hite, 27, of Plymouth, Indiana, was sentenced by District Judge Jon E. DeGuilio to 292 months’ imprisonment (to run concurrently with the defendant’s state sentence) and four years of supervised release after pleading guilty to the felony offense of conspiring to manufacture over 50 grams of a mixture or substance that contained methamphetamine. According to documents filed in this case, during the course of ten months in 2010, Hite manufactured methamphetamine for sale. This case was the result of an investigation by the Drug Enforcement Agency. This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Frank Schaffer.
• Jacqueline Rodriguez, 48, of Rochester, Indiana was sentenced by District Judge Jon E. DeGuilio to two years’ supervised probation and 4 months of home detention (location monitoring) and $13,490 restitution after pleading guilty to the felony offense of wire fraud. According to documents filed in this case, the defendant’s husband was previously unemployed and receiving assistance. After her husband found employment, Rodriguez continued to file vouchers for unemployment benefits. The defendant claimed that she committed this offense without her husband’s knowledge. This case was the result of an investigation by the Department of Labor. This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Barbara Brook.