DAVENPORT, IA – Darvill Jimmy Joseph Bragg, 25, of Davenport, is staring down a potentially life sentence after a federal jury convicted him Wednesday of being a felon in possession of a firearm. The conviction stems from a shooting last October and a subsequent traffic stop that put Bragg and the .45 caliber Taurus Judge in the crosshairs of law enforcement.
The trial, which began Monday, August 24, 2020, laid out a grim picture for the jury. Witnesses detailed a shooting that erupted around 8:00 p.m. on October 25, 2019, in the parking lot of a Davenport apartment building. Just three hours later, Davenport Police pulled over a vehicle near the same location, with Bragg riding shotgun.
It was during that stop that officers discovered the loaded Taurus Judge tucked away in the front passenger door bin. The gun directly linked Bragg to the earlier shooting, and prosecutors wasted no time connecting it to his already extensive criminal history. Bragg’s past is checkered with violence – in 2011, he was convicted of two armed robberies in Rock Island, Illinois, both Class X felonies that involved the use of a firearm.
The pattern of violence continued in 2015, when Bragg was convicted in Scott County, Iowa, of Willful Injury, a Class C felony. The conviction stemmed from an incident where he shot and injured another man. Prosecutors are now poised to argue that Bragg qualifies as an “Armed Career Criminal” under Title 18, United States Code, Section 924(e), a designation that carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years – and a maximum of life – in prison.
The investigation was a joint effort between the Davenport Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. These agencies worked tirelessly to build a case against Bragg, presenting evidence that painted him as a repeat offender with a penchant for firearms and violence. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa is prosecuting the case, seeking to ensure Bragg faces the maximum penalty for his crimes.
Bragg’s sentencing is scheduled for January 15, 2021, at 9:30 a.m. at the Federal Courthouse in Davenport. The courtroom will be a tense scene as the judge considers the weight of Bragg’s past and the potential for a life sentence. For the residents of Davenport, the conviction offers a small measure of relief, but the shadow of gun violence continues to loom large.
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Key Facts
- State: Iowa
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Weapons|Violent Crime|Organized Crime
- Source: Official Source ↗
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