A Dresden man, Chapell Dain Cissell, age 31, has been handed a decade-long sentence to federal prison on charges of possessing firearms and a significant amount of ammunition, following a distressing incident at a local bar that caught the attention of law enforcement, as per the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Western District of Tennessee.
The case began in March 2021 following a report of an assault at Fast Eddie's Bar, prompting a response from the Weakley County Sheriff’s Department. Upon arrival, deputies encountered victims who described how Cissell, wearing a ballistic "bullet proof vest" and armed with an assault rifle, had threatened them before fleeing the scene. These details were outlined by Interim U.S. Attorney Joseph C. Murphy, Jr., as reported by the U.S. Attorney's Office.
Deputies quickly located Cissell, who was found wearing the ballistic vest and seated inside a pickup truck, allegedly preparing to leave his residence. At that moment, officers observed the distinctive wooden handle of a revolver protruding from the top of the vest. Upon taking Cissell into custody, law enforcement recovered three firearms and multiple rounds of ammunition from both his person and the vehicle. Additionally, a subsequent search of his residence revealed a cache of weapons and more than two thousand rounds of ammunition.
Following extensive investigations and legal proceedings, Cissell was sentenced on April 11, 2025, by United States District Court Judge J. Daniel Breen to the maximum term allowed by law—120 months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release. This sentence came after he pleaded guilty to six counts of possessing firearms as a convicted felon. Prosecutors confirmed that, unlike other correctional systems that may allow early release through parole, the federal system does not offer such provisions.
The collaborative efforts of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives alongside the Weakley County Sheriff’s Department saw this case reach its resolution while Assistant United States Attorney Adam Davis helmed the prosecution.
