Chicago Man in Possession of 16 Pounds of Meth Sentenced to 21 Years in Federal Prison

A man who law enforcement officers found with more than 16 pounds of methamphetamine was sentenced today to more than 21 years in federal prison.

Demetrius Stone, age 54, from Chicago, Illinois, received the prison term after a May 8, 2026, guilty plea to one count of possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance.

Evidence at the sentencing hearing showed that officers tried to stop a car that Stone was driving on January 7, 2026.  Stone sped away from officers and a chase ensued.  Stone drove through a residential area in Cedar Rapids at over twice the posted speed limit of 25 miles per hour.  Stone also ran a stop sign and nearly struck a city bus.  Stone eventually hit a curb, causing damage to his car.  As his car was coming to a stop, Stone got out and attempted to run.  Officers apprehended him a short distance from his car.  

Officers found over 11 pounds of ice methamphetamine inside and near the car that Stone had been driving.  Later that same evening, officers searched Stone’s apartment in Cedar Rapids.  Officers found approximately five and a half pounds of ice methamphetamine, approximately eight ounces of cocaine, a loaded gun, and approximately $59,000 in cash.

Stone was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Chief Judge C.J. Williams.  Stone was sentenced to 259 months’ imprisonment.  He must also serve a five-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.

Stone is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until he can be transported to a federal prison.

The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Task Force consisting of the DEA; the Linn County Sheriff's Office; the Cedar Rapids Police Department; the Marion Police Department; and the Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement and was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Adam J. Vander Stoep. 

Mayor Mamdani Names Douglas Keith as Executive Director of the Mayor’s Advisory Committee on the Judiciary, Announces Sweeping Ethics Reforms

 

Douglas Keith named Executive Director of the Mayor’s Advisory Committee on the Judiciary. 

 

First-ever public Code of Conduct establishes ethical standards for Committee members; agreement restores and for the first time formalizes New York City Bar Association’s role in evaluating judicial candidates. 

Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani today announced the appointment of Douglas Keith as Executive Director and Senior Legal Officer of the Mayor’s Advisory Committee on the Judiciary (MACJ), alongside two reforms to strengthen the integrity and independence of the City’s judicial selection process: the Committee’s first-ever publicly available Code of Conduct, and a new agreement restoring, and for the first time formalizing, the New York City Bar Association’s role in evaluating judicial candidates. 

 

Judges make decisions that shape New Yorkers’ lives, from family disputes to criminal cases and civil matters. The new Code of Conduct establishes clear and transparent ethical standards for those responsible for evaluating judicial candidates, while the agreement with the City Bar brings independent, trusted input into the selection process. Together, the measures will strengthen accountability and public confidence in how the City selects judges.  

 

Keith joins MACJ from the Brennan Center for Justice at New York University School of Law, where he served as Deputy Director of the Judiciary Program and Co-Founding Editor of State Court Report. He brings a decade of experience focused on judicial selection mechanisms nationwide, court independence and the protection of individual rights. 

 

“Judges make decisions every day that shape New Yorkers’ lives, and the process for selecting them must be worthy of the public’s trust,” said Mayor Mamdani. “With Douglas Keith’s leadership, our first-ever Code of Conduct, and a restored partnership with the City Bar, we are strengthening the safeguards that ensure judges are evaluated on their merits, free from favoritism and with the independence our judiciary demands and New Yorkers deserve.” 

  

“New York City’s criminal, family, and civil courts make decisions with tremendous impact on people’s lives,” said Douglas Keith, Executive Director and Senior Legal Officer of the Mayor’s Advisory Committee on the Judiciary. “I am looking forward to facilitating a process that ensures the judiciary has the independence it needs to do its vital work, that ensures the city’s courts reflect the diverse public that they serve, and that is worthy of the public trust.” 

 

“An independent and impartial judiciary begins with a rigorous and principled selection process,” said Ramzi Kassem, Chief Counsel to the Mayor and City Hall, who supervises the Mayor’s Advisory Committee on the Judiciary. “Our new Code of Conduct establishes clear ethical obligations for every Committee member, including the Chair, while our agreement with the City Bar brings invaluable scrutiny and expertise back into candidate evaluations. Douglas Keith’s deep experience strengthening courts nationwide and protecting individual rights is the final building block that will help us carry out this responsibility with the integrity New Yorkers deserve.”  

 

“I look forward to working closely with Doug Keith in his role as Executive Director to ensure a fair, independent, and merit-based selection process for every judicial appointment,” said Ali Najmi, Chair, Mayor’s Advisory Committee on the Judiciary. “Together with the restoration of the City Bar’s independent review, and our new Code of Conduct, we are setting a new standard for judicial selection in New York City.” 

 

Establishing MACJ’s First Code of Conduct 

 

The judiciary exercises enormous power in New Yorkers’ lives. The Mamdani administration is establishing clear standards for the people entrusted with evaluating candidates for judicial appointment. MACJ’s new, publicly available Code of Conduct codifies ethical obligations governing merit-based evaluations, impartiality, recusals, disclosures and conflicts of interest. The Code applies to every Committee member, including the Chair, and establishes expectations for addressing potential conflicts and appearances of impropriety. 

 

These safeguards are designed to ensure candidates are evaluated fairly and consistently, free from improper influence, and to strengthen public confidence in the judicial selection process. 

 

Restoring the City Bar’s role in judicial selection 

 

The Mamdani administration has restored MACJ’s formal collaboration with the New York City Bar Association after the prior administration ended the association’s independent review of judicial candidates. 

 

Under the new memorandum of understanding, the City Bar’s Judiciary Committee will independently evaluate candidates referred by MACJ and provide ratings and supporting feedback to MACJ. MACJ will give those assessments due consideration while retaining responsibility for exercising its own independent judgment. 

 

The agreement restores an additional layer of independent review to the selection process, bringing the City Bar’s legal expertise to the evaluation of candidates for judicial appointment.  

 

Building a more accessible and accountable judiciary 

 

Today’s announcement builds on steps Mayor Mamdani has taken since the beginning of his administration to strengthen judicial selection and broaden public engagement. 

 

On the second day of his administration, Mayor Mamdani appointed civil rights and election attorney Ali Najmi as MACJ Chair and signed an executive order directing the Committee to engage a broader cross-section of the legal community, including public defenders, attorneys representing parents and children in Family Court, and attorneys working in indigent legal services. The order also requires the Committee to regularly publish demographic data on the judicial applicant pool and create a searchable public database to help New Yorkers track upcoming appointments. 

 

Mayor Mamdani has also announced three new judicial appointments—Cary Fischer, Natalie Barros and Andrés Casas—and nine judicial reappointments.  

 

In July, Mayor Mamdani announced the full slate of MACJ members, bringing together practitioners, law professors and former judges with experience across public defense, prosecution, civil rights advocacy, private practice, academia, and public service. 

 

MACJ evaluates candidates for appointments to the City’s Family and Criminal Courts, as well as interim appointments to its Civil Courts, and recommends qualified candidates to the Mayor. The Committee assesses candidates’ temperament, fairness and judgment as part of its work to ensure the City’s judiciary serves all New Yorkers with integrity. 

 

About Douglas Keith 

 

Douglas Keith previously served as Deputy Director of the Judiciary Program at the Brennan Center for Justice at New York University School of Law, where he led research and advocacy on judicial selection, judicial elections, ethics and court independence. His work included research on judicial nominating commissions and the importance of judicial diversity, advancing efforts to build fair, diverse and impartial courts.  

 

Keith was also a co-founding editor of State Court Report, a Brennan Center publication focused on state courts and state constitutional law. Since joining the Brennan Center in 2015, his work has included research reports, legal briefs and judicial education programs focused on strengthening state courts and protecting individual rights.  

 

He earned his Juris Doctor from New York University School of Law and his Bachelor of Arts in Public Policy Studies from Duke University. 

WORST OF THE WORST: ICE Arrests Pedophiles, Violent Assailants, and Other Public Safety Threats

 

We will not rest until every one of these criminal invaders has been removed from our homeland

Yesterday, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) arrested more worst of the worst criminal illegal aliens convicted for horrific crimes across the country, including continuous sexual abuse of a child under 16 years old, endangering the welfare of a child, and aggravated assault.

“Every day, the brave patriots of ICE are working around the clock to arrest criminal illegal aliens from our communities. Just yesterday, ICE arrested pedophiles, violent assailants, and other public safety threats,” said Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin. “Under President Trump, we will not apologize for doing our jobs. Arresting and removing illegal aliens makes America safe again.”

Yesterday’s arrests include:

Vong Vongviset, a criminal illegal alien from Laos, convicted for continuous sexual abuse of a child under 16 years old in Fresno, California.

Jhostin Richard Abreu-Concepcion, a criminal illegal alien from the Dominican Republic, convicted for aggravated assault in Rich County, Utah.

Bayron David Oviedo-Diaz, a criminal illegal alien from Honduras, convicted for second-degree assault in Ocean City, Maryland.

Juan Hernandez-Ortiz, a criminal illegal alien from Mexico, convicted for possession of a controlled substance in Garden Grove, California.

Mario Mondragon, a criminal illegal alien from Mexico, convicted for endangering the welfare of a child in Long Branch, New Jersey.

Americans can see more public safety threats arrested in their communities on our webpage at WOW.DHS.Gov.

Image

Attorney General James Announces Community Gun Buybacks Have Removed More Than 10,000 Guns from New York

More Than 600 Firearms Turned in at OAG Gun Buyback Event in Rochester

Since 2019, OAG Has Recovered 10,534 Firearms from Gun Buyback Events Throughout New York

New York Attorney General Letitia James today announced that her office has removed more than 10,000 guns from New York’s streets through dozens of community gun buyback events hosted since 2019. Today, 606 firearms were turned in at a gun buyback event in Rochester hosted by the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) and the Rochester Police Department. This event is part of Attorney General James’ ongoing efforts to combat gun violence and keep New Yorkers safe. Since 2019, OAG’s gun buybacks have removed 10,534 guns from New York state.

“Taking dangerous weapons off the streets helps keep our communities safe,” said Attorney General James. “My office’s gun buyback events give New Yorkers a safe and secure way to rid their homes of deadly weapons and prevent them from falling into the wrong hands. Today, I am proud to announce that we have removed more than 10,000 guns through our buyback events. Every gun collected today was another life saved and potential tragedy avoided. I am grateful to the Rochester Police Department and the city of Rochester for their assistance with today’s buyback, and thank all our law enforcement partners across the state for their commitment to public safety.”

AG James announces community gun buybacks have removed more than 10,000 guns from New York

Some of the guns collected from Rochester gun buyback

Today’s buyback event in Rochester recovered 606 guns, including 44 assault weapons, 177 handguns, and 247 long guns. Following today’s gun buyback event, Attorney General James has helped remove 10,534 guns out of New York communities through more than 50 buyback events. 

Governor Hochul Announces 16 Arrests in State Crackdown on Auto Insurance Fraud

New York State Police and Department of Financial Services Uncover Staged Crashes and Fraudulent Insurance Claims Throughout New York State

Builds on Governor Hochul’s Efforts to Lower Auto Insurance Costs by Tackling Fraud, Waste and Abuse That Drive Up Costs for New York Drivers

Governor Kathy Hochul today announced that a joint investigative partnership by members of the New York State Police (NYSP) and the New York State Department of Financial Services (DFS) resulted in the arrests of 16 individuals as part of ongoing and joint auto insurance fraud investigations. The joint investigation uncovered nearly $500,000 in attempted fraudulent claims across more than a dozen cases in New York City and Suffolk, Onondaga, Monroe, and Erie counties. The arrests follow major reforms enacted earlier this year by Governor Hochul as part of her statewide effort to combat staged crashes, fraudulent insurance claims and other schemes that drive up auto insurance costs for New Yorkers.

“Auto insurance fraud is not a victimless crime — every staged crash, fraudulent claim and criminal scheme ultimately drives up costs for New Yorkers who play by the rules,” Governor Hochul said. “We’re cracking down on fraudsters and making it clear that New York will not tolerate criminals gaming the system at the expense of hardworking families.”

The 16 arrests announced today include 31 total charges – 29 felonies and 2 misdemeanors across the following counties:

County	Total Arrests
Bronx	7
Erie	1
Kings	2
Monroe	1
Queens	1
Onondaga	1
Richmond	1
Suffolk	2

Two cases highlight the ongoing work of the task force:

In Brooklyn, investigators examined a December 2, 2025 crash in which a driver allegedly caused a collision by deliberately cutting in front of another vehicle at an intersection. Investigators say the suspect falsely accused the other driver of running a stop sign and collected more than $16,000 in medical insurance claims.

Video evidence shows the suspect's vehicle turning into the other car, according to investigators. Police arrested the suspect on charges of third-degree insurance fraud, a class D felony, as well as first-degree falsifying business records, second-degree staging a motor vehicle accident and third-degree criminal mischief, all class E felonies. The investigation remains ongoing.

On March 18, 2026, multiple actors staged an accident in the Bronx, NY. Following the accident, the suspects involved received medical treatment from injuries they alleged from the staged accident, which resulted in more than $70,000 worth of fraudulent medical expenses. Both suspects were arrested and charged with Insurance Fraud 2nd degree–C Felony, Attempted Grand Larceny 2nd degree-D Felony and Falsifying Business Records 1st-E Felony.

Investigations remain ongoing, with additional enforcement actions expected. Anyone who thinks they may have been a victim of insurance fraud is urged to call the Insurance Fraud Hotline at 888-372-8369 or visit dfs.ny.gov/consumers to file an online report.