Billy Ray Dickerson, Jr., a 46-year-old man from Butner, North Carolina, has been sentenced to 92 months in prison for possessing a firearm as a convicted felon.
The incident occurred on April 4, 2017, in Durham, North Carolina, when Dickerson aggressively tailgated another vehicle. The other driver pulled over to let Dickerson pass, but instead, Dickerson pulled beside the man, threatened to ‘send him to his maker,’ and called him a racial slur several times before pulling out a handgun and firing it as the other driver sped off.
Dickerson then wrecked into another vehicle and was seen throwing items in the back of the van. A Davis Industries .380 caliber pistol, model P-380, was located in the back of the van. Dickerson was arrested that day on several related state charges.
Before a search warrant could be executed to retrieve evidence of gunshot residue from his hands, Dickerson urinated on the floor and rubbed his hands in the urine, in an unsuccessful attempt to thwart the test for gunshot residue.
Dickerson has prior federal convictions for drug and counterfeiting offenses. In 1997, the defendant was convicted of Felony Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Cocaine and Marijuana and Felony Structuring Transactions in the Eastern District of North Carolina and sentenced to 10 years imprisonment. In 2012, Dickerson pled guilty to Felony Passing, Uttering, and Publishing Counterfeit Obligations and was sentenced to 10 months imprisonment.
At sentencing, the Court heard evidence of two other uncharged incidents in December of 2016 and February of 2017 involving Dickerson. In both incidents, Dickerson brandished a handgun, made threats, and discharged a handgun.
Dickerson will serve three years of supervised release at the conclusion of his prison sentence. This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, and the Durham County Sheriff’s Office. Special Assistant United States Attorney Kennedy Gates prosecuted the case.
Key Facts
- State: North Carolina
- Category: Violent Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
ðŸâ€Â’ Get the grimiest stories delivered weekly. Subscribe free →
