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Lawrence County Man Sentenced to 210 Months in Federal Meth and Firearms Case

David Royse, 47, of Sumner, pleaded guilty to methamphetamine distribution and firearms charges and was sentenced on August 28, 2026, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Illinois.

4 reports on this incident · first at Aug 28, 2026, 6:08 p.m. ET

By AI ReporterUpdated Sep 10, 2026, 3:22 p.m. ET
A federal district court judge David Royse, 47, of Sumner, to 210 months in federal prison for possessing and distributing methamphetamine in Lawrence and Richland Counties and unlawfully possessing several firearms, according to a U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Illinois statement. The sentencing date was August 28, 2026, according to the office's record. Royse pleaded guilty to three counts of distribution of methamphetamine, one count of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, and one count of possession of a firearm by a felon. The federal sentence will run concurrent with any term of imprisonment ordered in Royse's pending state cases in Lawrence County and Richland County, the U.S. Attorney's Office said. Following imprisonment, he will serve ten years of supervised release. The judge also ordered him to pay a $500 fine. Royse was arrested in November 2025 and will remain in custody, according to the office. According to court documents cited by the U.S. Attorney's Office, Royse possessed at least 50 grams of methamphetamine in February 2023 and sold methamphetamine on three occasions in March, May, and October 2025. During this time, he possessed multiple firearms despite having a prior felony conviction for methamphetamine production, and he consented to the forfeiture of the firearms, the office said. Bridgeport Police Department, Lawrence County Sheriff's Department, Richland County Sheriff's Office, Olney Police Department, Illinois State Police, and the Drug Enforcement Administration investigated the case, and Assistant U.S. Attorney David Sanders prosecuted it, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office. Other outlets have reported sentences in separate cases involving other defendants. wlos.com reported a sentence of for Irvin Franklin Freeman. kltz.com reported a sentence of , for Marie Viola Nesbit, 60. cleveland19.com reported a 40-month sentence for Curtis Harris, of Euclid. wdtv.com reported a 7-year sentence for Justin Michael Hoover, 35, from Huttonsville. The U.S. Attorney's Office statement did not mention these other defendants.

Earlier reports

  1. Sep 4, 2026, 12:27 p.m. ET

    Two Sentenced in Separate Meth Trafficking Cases

    Two people were sentenced on Aug. 28, 2026, in separate methamphetamine trafficking cases, according to court records and news reports.

    Curtis Harris, of Euclid, was sentenced in the Lake County Court of Common Pleas to 40 months in prison, as reported by cleveland19.com. Harris was the subject of an ongoing narcotics investigation and was frequent to the Willoughby area to conduct narcotics sales, according to cleveland19.com.

    Marie Viola Nesbit, 60, was sentenced in the District of Montana to five years and four months in prison, followed by five years of supervised release, as reported by kltz.com. The government alleged that Nesbit mailed packages of methamphetamine to two houses in Plentywood, with the intention of selling the meth, according to kltz.com.

    The cases were investigated by the Willoughby Police Department, Lake County Narcotics Agency, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, FBI, Montana DCI, Montana Highway Patrol, and Sheridan County Sheriff's Office, according to the reports.

  2. Aug 31, 2026, 5:52 p.m. ET

    Euclid Man Sentenced to 40 Months for Willoughby Drug Trafficking

    Curtis Harris, of Euclid, was sentenced to 40 months in prison on August 28, 2026, in the Lake County Court of Common Pleas, according to cleveland19.com. Harris had been the subject of an ongoing narcotics investigation and was frequent to the Willoughby area to conduct narcotics sales, the outlet reported.

    The charges included trafficking in drugs and trafficking in cocaine, as reported by cleveland19.com. The Willoughby Police Department and the Lake County Narcotics Agency investigated the case.

  3. Aug 28, 2026, 6:08 p.m. ETFirst report

    Lawrence County Man Sentenced to 210 Months for Meth and Firearm Offenses

    A federal judge in Benton, Illinois, sentenced David Royse, 47, of Sumner, to 210 months in prison on August 28, 2026, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Illinois. Royse pleaded guilty to three counts of methamphetamine distribution, one count of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, and one count of possession of a firearm by a felon.

    Court documents state that Royse possessed at least 50 grams of meth in February 2023 and sold meth on three occasions in March, May, and October 2025. He also possessed multiple firearms despite a prior felony conviction for methamphetamine production. Royse consented to the forfeiture of the firearms.

    The sentence will run concurrently with any term imposed in Royse's pending state cases in Lawrence and Richland counties. Following imprisonment, Royse will serve ten years of supervised release and pay a $500 fine. He was arrested in November 2025 and remains in custody.

    U.S. Attorney Steven D. Weinhoeft said, "Armed drug dealers face a certain future in federal prison. FBI data show 2025 produced the largest year-to-year drop in the violent crime rate since national estimates began in 1936. That is no coincidence. Aggressive enforcement works."

    The case was investigated by the Bridgeport Police Department, Lawrence County Sheriff's Department, Richland County Sheriff's Office, Olney Police Department, Illinois State Police, and the Drug Enforcement Administration. Assistant U.S. Attorney David Sanders prosecuted the case.

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Revision history

  1. Version 410 Sept 2026, 19:22current

    Added the August 28, 2026 sentencing date from the official record and clarified that the other reported sentences involve separate defendants in separate cases.

  2. Version 35 Sept 2026, 12:52

    Rewritten to focus on the official U.S. Attorney's Office record for David Royse, clarifying that other reports concern different defendants and proceedings.

  3. Version 24 Sept 2026, 16:30

    Updated to include conflicting reports on sentence and district, and added co-defendant information.

  4. Version 128 Aug 2026, 22:08current

    First published.

  5. Version 14 Sept 2026, 16:27current

    First published.

  6. Version 131 Aug 2026, 21:52current

    First published.

  7. Version 131 Aug 2026, 21:25

    First published.

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