Kansas City Man Sentenced for Illegally Possessing Ammunition

A Kansas City, Mo., man who backed his truck into the deck of a private residence in Kansas City, Mo., was sentenced in federal court today for illegally possessing ammunition.

David E. Degerald, 65, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Beth Phillips to 33 months in prison without parole for being a felon in possession of ammunition.

According to an affidavit filed in support of the original complaint, on June 26, 2025, Kansas City, Mo. Police Department officers were dispatched to a private residence located on N. Oakley Avenue at approximately 6:19 p.m. to investigate a disturbance. The reporting party said he observed a male back a truck into the deck at the back of a nearby house. The reporting party indicated that he witnessed the male arguing with a female before leaving the area in the truck.

Officers later observed a vehicle that matched the description of the truck that was reportedly used during the domestic disturbance. While on foot, the officers tried to signal the truck to stop, but it continued driving north. Officers got into their patrol vehicles, caught up to the truck, and activated their emergency lights and sirens. The truck drove several hundred more feet before coming to a stop at the intersection of NE 48th Street and N. Oakley Avenue. The officers ordered the driver, and only occupant of the vehicle, out of the car and placed him in handcuffs. Officers immediately smelled a strong odor of alcohol coming from the driver's breath. The officers asked him how much he had to drink, and he replied, "too much." The driver was later identified as Degerald.

Officers asked Degerald if he would agree to submit to a battery of field sobriety tests. Degerald refused. Officers placed Degerald under arrest and arranged for his vehicle to be towed. During an inventory search of the truck, officers discovered eight rifle rounds and an extended black magazine that contained approximately 28 rounds of 9mm caliber ammunition.

Under federal law, it is illegal for anyone who has been convicted of a felony to be in possession of ammunition. Officers conducted a criminal background check and discovered that Degerald had several prior felony convictions, to include a 2001 conviction in Clay County, Mo. for murder in the second degree.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Trey Alford. It was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the Kansas City, Missouri Police Department.

Project Safe Neighborhoods

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.