NEWS RELEASE

OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES ATTORNEY

WESTERN DISTRICT OF MISSOURI

MATT J. WHITWORTH

Contact Don Ledford, Public Affairs ● (816) 426-4220 ● 400 East Ninth Street, Room 5510 ● Kansas City, MO 64106

www.usdoj.gov/usao/mow/index.html

APRIL 1, 2009

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

JURY CONVICTS KC MAN FOLLOWING HIGH-SPEED CHASE,

SHOOT-OUT IN BROOKSIDE AREA

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Matt J. Whitworth, Acting United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced that a Kansas City, Mo., man was convicted by a federal jury today of illegally possessing marijuana and a firearm following a high-speed car chase and shoot-out in the Brookside area.

Trae L. Winn, 22, of Kansas City, was found guilty of possessing with the intent to distribute marijuana and of possessing a firearm during and in relation to that drug-trafficking crime.

Winn was involved in a high-speed chase on 63^rd Street from Swope Parkway to Brookside Boulevard on Thursday, March 20, 2008. Winn was driving a red Camaro while being pursued by a maroon Chevrolet Impala and a purple Pontiac Bonneville. The cars were traveling in excess of 60 miles per hour westbound on 63^rd Street, with at least one of the pursuers leaning out the passenger-side window of his vehicle and shooting at Winn. The Camaro driven by Winn broadsided a pick-up truck at the intersection of 63^rd and Brookside Boulevard.

After the collision, Winn got out of the car and, pulling out a Springfield Armory .45-caliber semi-automatic pistol from the holster on the belt he was wearing, began shooting at the Pontiac. A passenger in the Pontiac got out of the car and began firing at Winn with what appeared to be an assault rifle. Numerous shots were fired, leaving 14 bullet holes in Winn’s vehicle and striking nearby parked cars and businesses. The Pontiac and Impala left the area, and Winn placed his firearm – a .45-caliber semi-automatic pistol – on the hood of his car and waited for the police to arrive.

While searching Winn’s vehicle, police officers found three plastic bags of marijuana, totaling 161.53 grams, under the passenger seat, as well as a digital scale and multiple clear plastic baggies.

Following the presentation of evidence, the jury in the U.S. District Court in Kansas City deliberated less than three hours before returning the guilty verdict to U.S. District Judge Greg Kays, ending a trial that began Monday, March 30, 2009.

Under federal statutes, Winn is subject to a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in federal prison without parole, up to a sentence of life in federal prison without parole, plus a fine up to $500,000. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul S. Becker. It was investigated by the Kansas City, Mo., Police Department.

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