Two Bloomington-Normal men released pending trial on firearms charges in McLean County

Darnel M. Allen, 29, and Demetrius S. Dawson, 23, appeared in custody Monday afternoon before Judge Brian Goldrick on misdemeanor charges.

Allen, of Normal, is charged with armed violence, a class unlawful possession of cannabis with intent to deliver between 300 and 500 grams, a class 3 misdemeanor; unlawful possession of 100-500 grams of cannabis; and aggravated unlawful use of a weapon, a class 4 misdemeanor.

Dawson, of Bloomington, is charged with armed habitual criminal, a class unlawful possession of a weapon by a felon, a class 3 misdemeanor; and aggravated unlawful use of a weapon, a class 4 misdemeanor.

Assistant District Attorney Brian McEldowney represented Allen at this hearing, and Assistant District Attorney Nicole Men represented Dawson.

According to the probable cause statement read by Assistant State’s Attorney David Rossi, Bloomington police were dispatched to the 400 block of North Lee Street at approximately 6:15 a.m. on Oct. 26 for the report of an armed suspect.

Officers conducted a traffic stop on a vehicle with an expired license plate leaving the area, and they found Allen driving, Dawson in the front passenger seat and a woman in the backseat, Rossi said.

During the check, officers smelled the odor of raw cannabis and searched the vehicle. They found a backpack on the rear passenger seat containing a brown and black FMK pistol loaded with 13 bullets in the magazine and one bullet in the chamber, according to court documents.

A further 34 rounds of 9mm ammunition and seven individually wrapped bags of cannabis were found in the backpack. The total weight of the cannabis was 194.5 grams, according to the probable cause statement.

Allen told police the backpack, cannabis and gun were his, and he said it was the only weapon in the vehicle, the prosecutor told the court Monday.

However, officers found a second gun, a loaded black Glock 43X, in the center console. Another round of ammunition was found in the center console lid, documents said.

Dawson, who has a previous felony conviction and therefore cannot legally own a firearm, denied possession of the second gun. During a search of the home, Dawson was found in possession of additional cannabis in an odor-proof container, according to court documents.

Although Rossi filed for detention in both cases, Goldrick denied both petitions. Allen and Dawson were ordered released on supervised release.

Allen and Dawson will appear again for arraignment, both scheduled for Nov. 8 at 9 a.m.