DA Hoovler Announces 7.5 Year State Prison Sentence in New Windsor Gun Case

November 4, 2022

DA Hoovler Announces 7.5 Year State Prison Sentence in New Windsor Gun Case

New Jersey Man Previously Convicted by Jury of Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Second Degree and Driving While Intoxicated

Orange County District Attorney David M. Hoovler announced that on Wednesday, November 2, 2022, Louis Dessources, age 38, of New Jersey, sentenced to seven and one half (7.5) years in state prison and five (5) years post-release supervision following conviction after a jury trial in Orange County Court of Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Second Degree and Operating a Motor Vehicle While Under the Influence of Alcohol. After he is released from prison, Dessources will be subject to an order to install an alcohol ignition interlock device in any vehicle he owns or operates.
On August 15, 2021, at approximately 2:47 a.m., members of the New York State Police stopped a Lincoln Navigator that was driving southbound on the New York State Thruway, in the Town of New Windsor, for traffic violations. Dessources was the driver and sole occupant of the car. The troopers noticed that Dessources had the odor of alcoholic beverage on his breath and appeared intoxicated. Dessources, who refused to take a breathalyzer test, was arrested for misdemeanor Operating a Motor Vehicle While Under the Influence of Alcohol. A loaded 9 mm Smith and Wesson semi-automatic pistol was found in Dessources’ book-bag which was recovered from the front passenger seat of the car.
District Attorney Hoovler thanked the New York State Police for their arrest of the defendant and their assistance in the prosecution.
“Illegally possessed firearms are dangerous and those who possess them must be held accountable,” said District Attorney David M. Hoovler. “This defendant possessed the loaded pistol in a bag that was within arms-reach as he was driving on the New York State Thruway. This defendant’s illegal possession of the firearm is even more egregious because of his intoxicated condition, which endangered the officers who ultimately recovered the weapon. I am grateful to the New York State Police for their vigilance in protecting the public.”
District Attorney Hoovler highly commended Assistant District Attorney Peter Fernandez and Senior Assistant District Attorney Julie Mohl who prosecuted the case.

A criminal charge is merely an allegation by the police that a defendant has committed a violation of the criminal law, and it is not evidence of guilt. All defendants are presumed innocent and entitled to a fair trial, during which it will be the State of New York’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.