Indictment — United States v. Denisha Clarice Morrison, Northern District of Iowa (Document 3)

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A grand jury indictment in United States v. Denisha Clarice Morrison, No. 1:24-cr-00055, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Iowa, Cedar Rapids Division, filed June 26, 2024 as Document 3. Count 1 charges theft of government funds under 18 U.S.C. § 641. The indictment describes the August 10, 2020 derecho and FEMA's Disaster No. 4557 declaration for Iowa on August 17, 2020. It alleges that Morrison received more than $6,500 in FEMA personal property and rental assistance in about September and October 2020 after an application falsely stated that Morrison lived in Cedar Rapids and suffered home and property damage from the derecho. The 4-page indictment's signature block names United States Attorney Timothy T. Duax.

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IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF IOWA
CEDAR RAPIDS DIVISION
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, No. 24-CR-55

INDICTMENT

Plaintiff,

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)

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)

) Countl

18 U.S.C. § 641:
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)

vs.

DENISHA CLARICE MORRISON, Theft of Government Funds

Defendant.

The Grand Jury charges:

Count 1
Theft of Government Funds

The Derecho

1. On August 10, 2020, a severe storm, commonly referred to as a
derecho, struck multiple counties in the Northern District of Iowa, as well as other
parts of the States of Iowa, Illinois, and Indiana. Media reporting on the event,
citing public and private sources, have estimated that the derecho, with winds
exceeding 100 mph, caused an estimated total of $7.5 billion in damage across the
affected states. The derecho caused long-duration power outages across the
Northern District of Iowa and the larger region, millions of acres of crops were
damaged or destroyed, and numerous semi-trucks were blown off major interstate
highways.

2. The Northern District of lowa was particularly hard-hit from the

derecho. The derecho swept through Linn, Jones, and Cedar Counties, with

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Case 1:24-cr-00055-CJW-MAR Document3 _ Filed 06/26/24 Page1of4
estimated 100-130 mph straight line winds and a maximum measured unofficial
wind gust of 126 mph at Atkins, Iowa, in Benton County. According to the National
Weather Service, what was unique about this event, making it even more extreme,
was the long duration of the high winds. Many locations experienced sustained
high winds and damaging gusts for 30 to 60 minutes, compared to 10 to 20 minutes,
which is more common for derechos.

3. Just within the city of Cedar Rapids, Linn County, Iowa, within the
Northern District of Iowa, power was cut to nearly all of the city’s residents by the
derecho, and damage estimates indicate that over 1,000 housing units were
rendered unlivable while hundreds of additional homes suffered damage. Many of
the city’s businesses were also damaged during the storm. For the entire State of
Iowa, estimates indicate that approximately 20% of the state’s total farmland was
adversely affected by the disaster event.

FEMA

4, In response to the disaster event, the Federal Emergency Management
Agency (FEMA) declared Disaster No. 4557 for the State of Iowa on August 17,
2020. Victims of the disaster who resided in the Iowa counties approved for
assistance could apply to FEMA for disaster relief assistance to help meet repair
and replacement expenses not covered by insurance. Linn County, Iowa, within the
Northern District of lowa, was included in the Iowa counties approved for

assistance.

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Case 1:24-cr-00055-CJW-MAR Document3 _ Filed 06/26/24 Page 2of4
5. FEMA disaster relief assistance for Disaster No. 4557 (derecho
benefits) are benefits authorized, transmitted, transferred, disbursed, and paid in
connection with a major disaster declaration under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster
Relief and Emergency Assistance Act, 42 U.S.C. §§ 5121 et seg. As of October 28,
2020, over $28 million in federal assistance had been approved for counties in the
Northern District of Iowa and elsewhere.

6. If an applicant met the eligibility criteria, he or she would be awarded
disaster relief grants for replacement of personal property and housing assistance
based upon his/her loss and need. Eligibility requirements, as outlined in Title 44,
Chapter 1, § 206.101 — 206.199 of the Code of Federal Regulations, include the
stipulations that a victim’s primary residence and/or personal property items must
be adversely affected by the disaster.

The Theft

7. In about September and October 2020, in the Northern District of Iowa
and elsewhere, the defendant, DENISHA CLARICE MORRISON, willfully and
knowingly did steal and purloin and did convert to her own use and for the use of
another, and without authority conveyed and disposed of money of the United
States and any department and agency thereof, and did willfully and knowingly
receive, conceal, and retain the same with intent to convert it to her use and gain,
knowing it to have been stolen, purloined, and converted, of a value exceeding
$1,000. Specifically, defendant DENISHA CLARICE MORRISON received more

than $6,500 in FEMA funds, specifically, personal property assistance and rental

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Case 1:24-cr-00055-CJW-MAR Document3 _ Filed 06/26/24 Page3of4
assistance, after a false and fraudulent application for derecho benefits was filed in
her name. Defendant’s application for derecho benefits falsely represented that (1)
defendant was a resident of Westdale Drive SW in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, at the time
of the derecho; and (2) defendant suffered both home and personal property damage
from the derecho at that address. In truth, defendant was not living in such
apartment at the time of the derecho and suffered no home or personal property
damage from the derecho at that residence. Defendant received the FEMA funds
into an account at a credit union in the Northern District of Iowa.

This was in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 641.

A TRUE BILL

7
Foreperson Date

PRESENTED IN OPEN COURT
BY THE

YT
TIMOTHY T. DUAX FOREMAN OF THE GRAND JURY

United States Attorney

Py: marie Nhe SL And filed La lave | 109.4
° PAUL DE YOUNG, CLERK
TIMOTHY L. VAVRICEK

Assistant United States Attorney

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Case 1:24-cr-00055-CJW-MAR Document3 _ Filed 06/26/24 Page 4 of 4


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