Convicted drug ringleader in La Salle County charged as armed habitual criminal

He was convicted of running a La Salle County drug ring and told in no uncertain terms that he couldn’t possess a gun. Clarence Merritte now faces up to 30 years in prison if convicted of handling a forbidden firearm.

Merritte, 41, of Chicago was charged Wednesday with being an armed habitual criminal, a Class X felony carrying a sentence of six to 30 years in prison with no possibility of probation.

Details still are pending, and La Salle County prosecutors declined to comment, citing Illinois Supreme Court policy to refrain from discussing active cases. However, the criminal information alleges that Merritte handled a firearm Feb. 29, 2023, suggesting investigators recently came into evidence linking him to a weapon.

Merritte, who’s currently serving time in the La Salle County Jail for driving on a revoked license, is scheduled to make his first court appearance Jan. 29 in La Salle County Circuit Court. By that time, a grand jury will have reviewed his charge.

Possessing a gun would be a no-no because Merritte has previous convictions for unlawful possession of a weapon by a felon and criminal drug conspiracy.

The conspiracy conviction dates back to 2008, when police and drug agents completed “Operation Lean In, Lock ‘Em Up” and charged 13 people with criminal drug conspiracy. Merritte and his brother Calvin Merritte were accused of orchestrating a band of drug dealers and couriers collectively known as “Da Hittaz.’

Clarence Merritte was convicted of criminal drug conspiracy after a bench trial and was sentenced to 12 years, while Calvin got 20 years. Most of the co-conspirators pleaded to lesser charges, although La Salle County prosecutors obtained a dozen prison sentences totaling more than 100 years.