United States Drug Enforcement Administration

SACRAMENTO, CA - Drug Enforcement Administration Special Agent in Charge Anthony D. Williams and United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner announced that a federal grand jury returned an indictment today charging Gerald Donald Taylor, 49, with possessing a form of cocaine base known as crack cocaine with the intent to distribute.

According to the indictment, Taylor knowingly possessed crack cocaine intending to later distribute it. The indictment alleges that Taylor has a prior felony conviction for selling crack cocaine in 1998.

This case is the product of an investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Department, the Sacramento Police Department, and the HIDTA task force. Assistant United States Attorney Jill Thomas is prosecuting the case.

If convicted, Taylor faces a maximum statutory penalty of 40 years in prison, a $2 million fine, or both. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.

The charges are only allegations and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.