Man pleads guilty to possessing cocaine, gets 18 months in prison in case stemming from Cary traffic stop

A man charged in Cary last year with being a felon in possession of a Federal S&W brand .40-caliber bullet and 1.5 grams of cocaine pleaded guilty Tuesday to possession of a controlled substance.

Rick Waller, 35, of Chicago pleaded guilty to the Class 4 felony and was sentenced to one year and six months in prison. When released, he will serve six months of mandatory supervised release, according to the judgment order signed by Judge Tiffany Davis filed in McHenry County court. Waller is required to serve half of the prison term and will receive credit for 280 days served in the county jail, according to the order.

In exchange for his plea, a charge of unlawful possession of ammunition by a felon, a Class 3 felony, was dismissed, according to court records. In May 2023, Waller was convicted of reckless discharge of a firearm, making it illegal for him to have a firearm or ammunition in his possession, according to the indictment. He was on probation at the time he was charged in this case, records show.

Cary police stopped Waller at 8:35 a.m. Dec. 4, 2023, on West Main Street at Prairie Street for displaying an expired vehicle registration, Cary Police Chief Patrick Finlon said at the time. Officers detected the odor of marijuana and conducted a consent search, which turned up 1.5 grams of cocaine in a small, dark-colored plastic bag and ammunition, according to Finlon and the criminal complaint.

At the time of his arrest, Waller was on felony probation for previous “violent offenses,” Judge Michael Chmiel said in a detention order filed Tuesday.