Lee E. Nichols, 35, of Cahokia, Illinois, is headed to federal prison for 71 months after pleading guilty to possessing methamphetamine and a loaded firearm — the violent crescendo of a criminal stunt that began with a 120-mph flight from police and ended with a loaded Colt .22 in his back pocket.
The trouble started just after midnight on June 21, 2017, when a Dupo police officer tried to pull over a speeding Corvette driven by Nichols. Instead of stopping, he slammed the gas. What followed was a reckless, high-speed chase across Illinois and onto the Jefferson Barracks Bridge into Missouri. Officers terminated pursuit, fearing for public safety — but they knew who they were dealing with. Nichols had a history, and the cops weren’t letting it go.
Within two hours of escaping, Nichols took to Facebook to brag about the chase. He claimed he hit over 120 mph and mocked law enforcement. A week later, he uploaded a taunting video vowing to run again and warning — in clear terms — that any officer who confronted him would be hurt. The post wasn’t just reckless; it was evidence.
On July 16, 2017, an off-duty Dupo police officer spotted Nichols at a bar in Columbia, Illinois. The alert was immediate. On-duty officers rushed to the scene and arrested Nichols on outstanding warrants tied to the June chase. During the arrest, they found .8 grams of methamphetamine in his front pants pocket and a loaded .22-caliber Colt pistol in his back pocket — a violation of federal law, given his criminal past.
Nichols is legally prohibited from owning a firearm due to a 2003 conviction for aggravated assault — a fact that sealed his fate in federal court. U.S. District Judge Staci M. Yandle imposed the 71-month sentence as part of a binding plea agreement, underscoring the seriousness of combining drugs, weapons, and outright defiance of law enforcement. Nichols must also serve three years of supervised release upon his return to society — assuming he keeps his word online next time.
The investigation was a joint effort by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Dupo Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher Hoell prosecuted the case. United States Attorney Steven D. Weinhoeft confirmed the outcome: Nichols may have thought he won the race in June. But justice, in the end, didn’t blink.
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Key Facts
- State: Illinois
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Weapons
- Source: Official Source ↗
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