Madison Man Sentenced to 3 Years for Illegally Possessing a Firearm

MADISON, WIS. - Timothy M. O'Shea, United States Attorney for the Western District of Wisconsin, announced that Tyez D. D. Boyd, 27, Madison, Wisconsin, was sentenced today by Chief U.S. District Judge James D. Peterson to 3 years in federal prison for possessing a firearm as a felon. The prison term will be followed by 3 years of supervised release. Boyd pleaded guilty to this charge on August 14, 2024.

On November 17, 2022, Madison Police Department officers stopped a vehicle in Madison on suspicion that its occupants were engaged in drug trafficking. Officers had intercepted a phone call earlier in the day between the front seat passenger, Davonte King, and a known fentanyl pill dealer setting up a drug deal. Tyez Boyd was a passenger in the rear seat.

Officers took King out of the vehicle and found he was in possession of fentanyl pills, cocaine, and over $1,000 in cash. Officers also found a loaded Taurus 9mm handgun under the front passenger seat where King had been seated. King is prohibited from legally possessing firearms because of a prior felony conviction.

Officers searched Boyd after he got out of the vehicle and found a loaded Kahr .45 caliber handgun in his pocket. Boyd is prohibited from legally possessing firearms because of multiple prior felony convictions. At the time of the stop, Boyd was on state probation for two cases, one involving a strangulation conviction and one involving a domestic violence conviction. Boyd also had three open criminal cases at the time, each of which involved acts of violence. Boyd had two active warrants for his arrest as well. His state probation has since been revoked and he was sentenced to 18 months in state prison on January 27, 2023.

At sentencing, Judge Peterson said Boyd's possession of a firearm was dangerous by itself, especially when he was carrying it into a dangerous situation with a drug trafficker. Judge Peterson found Boyd's case was aggravated by his criminal history, which included instances of domestic violence, as well as his history of noncompliance while on supervision. Finally, Judge Peterson said this crime deserved a 4-year sentence but reduced that sentence for time he had already served on his multiple state revocation sentences.

Co-defendant Davonte King pleaded guilty to possessing fentanyl intended for distribution and possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime and was sentenced by Judge Peterson on September 5, 2024, to 7 years in federal prison.

The charges against Boyd and King were the result of an investigation conducted by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Drug Enforcement Administration, IRS Criminal Investigations, Wisconsin Department of Justice Division of Criminal Investigation, and Dane County Narcotics Task Force. The ATF Madison Crime Gun Task Force also investigated the case. The task force consists of federal agents from ATF and Task Force Officers (TFOs) from local agencies including the Dane County and Clark County Sheriff's Offices and the Fitchburg, Madison, Sun Prairie, and La Crosse Police Departments. The Dane County District Attorney's Office assisted with the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Steven P. Anderson prosecuted this case.

This case has been brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), the U.S. Justice Department's program to reduce violent crime. The PSN approach emphasizes coordination between state and federal prosecutors and all levels of law enforcement to address gun crime, especially felons illegally possessing firearms and ammunition and violent and drug crimes that involve the use of firearms.