Delaware County man sentenced to 8 years for firearms

CEDAR RAPIDS — A Delaware County man, who assaulted his girlfriend and her teenage child because the teen had brought home a puppy and then fired gunshots at the woman when they tried to leave his residence, was sentenced Friday to eight years in federal prison.

Christopher Wuchter, 38, of Earlville, pleaded guilty in February in U.S. District Court to one count of possession of a firearm by a drug user.

The domestic assault happened in Wuchter’s home in Earlville in August 2022, according to court documents. Wuchter was angry about the puppy and charged at the woman’s 16-year-old child. The woman intervened, and Wuchter slammed her head into the teen’s head, causing the teen a bloody nose.

The woman and her three minor children quickly packed a few items and attempted to leave, but Wuchter opened a second-story window and fired three shots at the woman, according to a sentencing document.

Nobody was injured, and the woman and children got inside a vehicle. Wuchter picked up a brick and threatened to throw it at a car window, court documents stated.

2023 assault

On Jan. 9, 2023, Wuchter, who was driving a semi-truck trailer, became angry at the woman because she fell asleep and didn’t pick him up for work, the document stated.

Wuchter went to his Earlville home, where the woman was in bed, grabbed her by the ankle and pulled her out of the bed by her hair.

“Defendant told (girlfriend) she had 30 seconds to get out of the house or her kids were going to witness a murder,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Ashley Corkery said in the court document.

Wuchter’s minor daughter and the woman’s minor children were in the residence at the time.

Wuchter continued to push the woman and yell at her until she got in a pickup and led Wuchter, who was driving his semi, back to his workplace, Corkery said. On the drive, Wuchter tried to run the pickup off the road and followed the pickup so closely it was difficult for the woman to see the semi’s headlights in the rearview mirror.

While this was happening, the woman’s minor son called 911 to report the assault. Officials caught up to the woman and Wuchter and pulled them over. Wuchter admitted to grabbing the woman’s ankle and was arrested for domestic assault.

Firearms, drugs

During the arrest, officers looked inside Wuchter’s semi-truck cab, where they found marijuana and a loaded Smith & Wesson .40-caliber pistol with one round chambered — ready to fire, according to the document.

A urine specimen showed Wuchter tested positive for methamphetamine, amphetamine and marijuana.

Law enforcement obtained a search warrant for Wuchter’s residence and found 30 firearms throughout the house, ammunition, multiple loaded and unloaded magazines, a drum magazine — a high capacity magazine for firearms — and counterfeit money. Two of the weapons were 12-gauge sawed-off shotguns.

Officers also found drug paraphernalia, meth and remnants of marijuana being grown.

Prior convictions

Corkery, in the court document, stated Wuchter had threatened or abused the woman on multiple occasions, including one incident where he pointed a firearm at the back of her head. Another time, he dragged the woman outside the residence, while she was naked, and made her sit by the side of a road.

According to the court documents, Wuchter has 11 criminal convictions, with some involving alcohol, firearms and assaulting a police officer. He also has a history of substance abuse.

U.S. District Chief Judge C.J. Williams sentenced Wuchter to eight years and one day in prison and also ordered him to serve three years of supervised release following prison.

The case was prosecuted by Corkery and investigated by the Delaware County Sheriff’s Office and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

Comments: (319) 398-8318; trish.mehaffey@thegazette.com