Demetrio Daga is not doing well in New York’s Albany County jail, especially last week when his son Dimitri had his 8th birthday. When Daga turned eight, his father was in the very same jail, but he was facing drug charges.
“When I turned eight, I got a letter from my father from the very facility I am now in,” Daga said this week. “Now, I’m here in some twisted nightmare and my son is in the same situation I was in. It’s a punch in the gut.”
Daga never heard from his father after that, which is not what he wants for his two young boys.
“That’s the most difficult thing for me—being away from my children,” he said. “They were constantly with me. If I was working outside, I’d teach them how to paint and sand. My eight-year-old knows how to start the mower on his own and mow the lawn. We’d go to a state park and see all of Albany from 1,500 feet up. We’d go there on mornings and weekends. I miss them both so much.
“So far, I’ve missed Dimitri’s birthday. I’m going to miss my wife’s birthday. I’m going to miss Christmas. I’ve never missed their birthdays, and I have never not been with them for the holidays. It’s difficult for me,” Daga said. “I try and call them every day. My oldest son keeps asking when he’s going to see me. It’s hard for them, and I don’t want to break down for them. I don’t want to tell them the wrong info or make promises I can’t keep.”
State charges only
In September, Daga was convicted after a seven-day trial of violating 15 New York state weapon charges: one count of Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the First Degree, two counts of Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Second Degree, three counts of Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Third Degree, and nine counts of Criminal Possession of a Firearm.
He was not charged or convicted of making firearms, even though his prosecutor accused him of it in court.
“Demetrio Daga was buying and producing gun parts and building weapons in his home,” Deputy Chief Assistant District Attorney Jessica Blain-Lewis told the jury during closing arguments. “And he wasn’t just someone who builds guns, he was building an arsenal.”
Blain-Lewis has never shied away from the media. In 2016, she was a contestant on the popular CBS show “Survivor.”
Daga’s entire criminal case was investigated solely by the New York State Police. No other local, state or federal law enforcement agencies were involved in the investigation.
Daga became the focus of the state police investigators because they were monitoring eBay purchases by New York residents and saw that he was purchasing firearm components, such as springs, pins and other legal gun parts.
He was never accused of misusing any of the firearms he made. Prior to his current case, Daga had never once been arrested.
Possible relief?
Daga was supposed to have been sentenced last month. However, County Court Judge Andra Ackerman, who oversaw Daga’s trial, delayed his sentencing until Nov. 30. The judge did not say why the delay was needed.
Daga strongly suspects why the judge did not want to sentence him last month. She wants a new pre-sentence investigation report, or PSI.
Even though Daga is technically facing decades behind bars, the last PSI, which was prepared by the Albany County Probation Department, recommended that he receive no jail time, only probation.
Judge Ackerman—who has already admitted she may not follow her own probation department’s recommendations—hopes a new PSI will recommend that Daga serve time behind bars, Daga and his legal team believe.
On Tuesday, Daga was interviewed again for the new PSI. The entire process took less than five minutes.
“I told her I was working 12-hour days in the jail’s kitchen,” Daga said. “It was very quick. The woman who interviewed me wrote the first PSI too.”
A family harmed
Daga’s mother-in-law, Mary Googas, supports him 100 percent.
“He’s a special edition. We totally love him. He’s a great help to everybody. I’m happy he’s in our family,” she said. “He’s a great father. He takes those kinds everywhere. They adore him and he adores them.”
Now, with Daga behind bars, she and her husband have stepped up to help.
“We pick the boys up from school and we’ll watch them when our daughter Maria needs to do something,” she said. “We go to the jail and visit him and my heart breaks. They’re taking him away from his family. He’s not a criminal. He made the guns and put them away. He never used them, but it’s New York State, and New York State wants to rule everything you do.”
Despite the decades he is facing behind bars, Daga is worried most about Gianni and Dimitri.
Said Daga: “My boys became my rhythm. You don’t realize how in tune you are until you don’t hear that rhythm anymore. There are so many things that you don’t realize became the rhythm of your life until they’re gone.”
Demetrio Daga’s family has established a GiveSendGo page for those who are able to help.
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This story is part of the Second Amendment Foundation’s Investigative Journalism Project and is published here with their permission.