KC Man Who ‘Terrorized His Neighborhood’ Charged with Illegally Possessing Firearm
Each weekday, the Department of Justice will highlight a case that has resulted from Operation Legend. Today’s case is out of the Western District of Missouri. Operation Legend launched in Kansas City on July 8, 2020, in response to the city facing increased homicide and non-fatal shooting rates.
United States vs. Leamandreal Dorsey
“Court documents cite a long history of gun violence and drug trafficking by this defendant who terrorized his neighborhood, allegedly shooting several victims,” Garrison said. “This is his second federal charge for illegally possessing firearms. Operation LeGend is successfully taking armed, violent criminals like this off the street to make our neighborhoods safer.”
A Kansas City, Missouri, man was charged with a firearm crime on July 24, 2020, in federal court in the Western District of Missouri after he was arrested for allegedly shooting three victims in an incident that week.
Leamandreal Dorsey, 40, was charged in federal court with being a felon in possession of a firearm. According to the charging document, Dorsey illegally possessed a firearm, specifically a Glock .40-caliber handgun attached to an extended drum magazine that contained 40 live rounds of ammunition.
On April 1, 2020, Kansas City police officers responded to a reported weapons disturbance. One of Dorsey’s neighbors told officers that Dorsey pointed a gun at him and threatened him. Officers contacted Dorsey at his home, sitting on the roof of a black Mercedes-Benz C300. It is alleged that Dorsey jumped into the driver’s seat when officers approached. Dorsey was removed from his vehicle and taken into custody. The owner of the vehicle provided consent for the officers to search the car, and they found a backpack in the passenger’s seat that contained the Glock .40-caliber handgun attached to an extended drum magazine, as well as a spare magazine.
Although this incident occurred on April 1, Dorsey was arrested following a separate shooting incident that occurred the week of July 24 during which three individuals were wounded by gunfire.
According to charging documents, on July 22, 2020, Kansas City, Missouri, police officers responded to a shooting. Six individuals were on the front porch of a residence when an individual – later identified as Dorsey – started shooting at them. According to the victims, Dorsey walked away, but returned minutes later and began shooting again; he then fled on foot. Three of the individuals were struck by gunfire and transported to the hospital. Investigators found 31 spent shell casings at the scene.
Later the same day, investigators received a Crime Stoppers tip that identified Dorsey as the shooter.
Because of a previous felony conviction punishable by more than one year in prison, Dorsey is prohibited from possessing a firearm. His prior convictions includes being a felon in possession of a firearm, for which he served three years in federal prison. He also has two prior felony convictions for unlawful use of a weapon, two prior felony convictions for possession of a controlled substance, and a prior felony conviction for drug trafficking.
The charging document also alleges four previous instances in which Dorsey pointed firearms at people and threatened them. Among those incidents, Dorsey shot a man in the hip who was running from Dorsey’s residence following a disagreement.
The details contained in the charging document are allegations. The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
This case was investigated by the Kansas City, Mo., Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).
Background on Operation Legend
President Trump promised to assist America’s cities that have been plagued by violence. In July, Attorney General William P. Barr announced the launch of Operation Legend, a sustained, systematic and coordinated law enforcement initiative across all federal law enforcement agencies working in conjunction with state and local law enforcement officials to fight violent crime in cities across America that were experiencing an uptick in violence. Operation Legend is named after four-year-old LeGend Taliferro, who was shot and killed on June 29th in Kansas City, Missouri, while asleep in his home.
Since its inception, Operation Legend has yielded more than 2000 local, state, and federal arrests, with more than 592 defendants charged with federal crimes.
Operation Legend was launched in Kansas City, Mo., on July 8, 2020, and expanded to Chicago and Albuquerque on July 22, 2020, to Cleveland, Detroit, and Milwaukee on July 29, 2020, to St. Louis and Memphis on Aug. 6, 2020, and to Indianapolis on Aug. 14, 2020. As part of Operation Legend, Attorney General Barr has directed federal agents from the FBI, U.S. Marshals Service, DEA and ATF to surge resources to these cities to help state and local officials fighting violent crime.
