LATEST NEWS
DARIUS SMITH PLEADS GUILTY TO COUNTERFEIT CURRENCY CHARGE
August 2, 2018
Taney County Prosecuting Attorney Jeff Merrell announced today that DARIUS SMITH d/o/b 1-12-1995 of Branson, Missouri entered a plea of guilty Tuesday to the class D felony of forgery in the Circuit Court of Taney County, Missouri. Formal sentencing is set for October 16, 2018 at 9:00am.
On July 7, 2017, Deputy Gene Piveral with the Taney County Sheriff’s Department stopped an Oldsmobile for driving on the shoulder of Business 65 in Hollister, Missouri. During the traffic stop Deputy Piveral learned that the vehicle was stolen out of Springfield, Missouri. DARIUS SMITH was arrested and during a search of the vehicle seven-hundred and fifty (750) dollars in counterfeit currency was found in the center console.
The range of punishment for a class D felony is imprisonment in the custody of the Missouri Department of Corrections for a term of years not to exceed seven (7) years; or by imprisonment for a special term not to exceed one (1) year in the county jail or other authorized penal institution; or by a fine not to exceed ten thousand dollars ($10,000); or by both imprisonment and a fine.
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CODY WRY PLEADS GUILTY TO LYING TO COPS THE DAY OF TRIAL
August 2, 2018
CODY WRY d/o/b 3-10-1992 of Forsyth, Missouri plead guilty without an agreement Tuesday to the class B misdemeanors of making a false declaration and making a false report in front of Taney County Associate Circuit Judge Tiffany Yarnell. Formal sentencing is set for October 4, 2018.
On April 28, 2018 Cody Wry made a police report and filled out a statement with the Taney County Sheriff’s office that he had stopped his vehicle at the intersection of Strawberry and Forsyth-Taneyville Road. He advised law enforcement that a male opened his door, pointed a gun at him and ordered him to get over or get out. Due to a young child in the car, CODY WRY moved over to the passenger seat and sometime later the vehicle left the roadway and crashed into a tree. CODY WRY was shown a photo lineup and identified another individual as the person that pointed a gun at him, stole the car and crashed it into a tree. CODY WRY later admitted he made up the story due to his drug use and fear that he would lose his license.
The range of punishment for each of the class B misdemeanors of making a false declaration and making a false report is imprisonment in the county jail or other authorized penal institution for a term not to exceed six (6) months; by a fine not to exceed one thousand dollars ($1,000); or by both imprisonment and a fine.
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BRANDY SHADDOX GUILTY OF FIRST DEGREE MURDER
July 28, 2018
BRANDY B. SHADDOX, d/o/b 12-08-1977 of Branson, Missouri was found guilty on Friday of murder in the first degree, assault in the first degree, armed criminal action, kidnapping and forgery in the Circuit Court of Lawrence County, Missouri. A twelve (12) woman jury heard evidence and arguments over a five day period before arriving at their verdict. Under Missouri law, the sentence on murder in the first degree is fixed at life imprisonment without the possibility of parole and after a brief sentencing hearing the jury recommended a life sentence on assault in the first degree, a twenty (20) year sentence on armed criminal action, fifteen (15) years on kidnapping and four (4) years on forgery. The case was tried by Taney County Prosecuting Attorney Jeff Merrell and Chief Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Chris Lebeck in Lawrence County on a change of venue filed by the defense. Lawrence County Circuit Judge Jack Goodman scheduled formal sentencing for October 10, 2018 at 9:00am.
The verdicts stem from crimes committed in November of 2015 where BRANDY SHADDOX orchestrated the death of 72-year old Larry Adams, of Hollister by beating him in the head with a flashlight and driving him to a remote location off Highway 65 in Walnut Shade, Missouri. His body was discovered found wrapped in a tarp with his hands and feet “zip-tied” in the back of BRANDY SHADDOX vehicle. Adams died of hypothermia while BRANDY SHADDOX continued to live in his residence, use his vehicle and make purchases on his credit cards.
MARK BAILEY, d/o/b 10-10-1963 of Highlandville, Missouri previously plead guilty to murder in the second degree, kidnapping and felonious restraint for his involvement in the death of Larry Adams. On March 30th, 2018 MARK BAILEY received a twenty year (20) sentence for the murder, fifteen year (15) sentence for the kidnapping and seven (7) year sentence for the felonious restraint.
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MICHAEL TYSON SENTENCED FOR SEXUALLY ABUSING A CHILD
July 13, 2018
On Thursday, July 12, 2018, MICHAEL S. TYSON, d/o/b 11-14-1975, of Hollister, was sentenced to twenty (20) years in prison in the Circuit Court of Taney County, Missouri, for one count of statutory sodomy in the first degree, one count of statutory rape in the first degree, eight (8) counts of sexual exploitation of a minor child, and one count of possession of child pornography, consecutive to a federal sentence. In April of this year, Tyson appeared in custody before Christian County Circuit Judge Jennifer Growcock and admitted to having sexual intercourse and committing acts of sodomy on a minor child. On Thursday, Judge Growcock heard sentencing arguments from Tyson’s attorney and from Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Shana Mora, of the Taney County Prosecutor’s Office, before she ordered Tyson to serve his prison sentence for the State of Missouri consecutive to his current federal sentence of thirty (30) years.
On April 7, 2015, officers from the Hollister Police Department responded to Cox Hospital in reference to a report of a past child molestation. The responding officer made contact with the mother of the child who advised the officer that her child had disclosed that Tyson, the mother’s boyfriend, had been hurting the child. The mother further discovered that Tyson had also been sexually abusing the child. A few days later the child was interviewed at the Lakes Area Child Advocacy Center. During that interview, the child disclosed that Tyson had engaged in several acts of sodomy and rape. The child also disclosed that Tyson recorded some of these incidents on his phone.
On April 10, 2015, based on the disclosures of the child, officers from the Hollister Police Department executed a search warrant at Tyson’s residence. During the search of the residence, officers found an abundance of sex toys and several electronic devices. Detective Sanders of the Hollister Police Department sent those electronic devices to MOCIC (Mid-States Organized Crime Information Center) for review. Analysts at MOCIC later advised Detective Sanders that several images and videos of child pornography were found on Tyson’s electronic devices.
“I could not be more proud of how Ms. Mora represented this office in sentencing, and how she represented the citizens of Taney County throughout the course of handling this case,” said Taney County Prosecutor Jeff Merrell. “We were not about to budge on the fact that Mr. Tyson should have to serve consecutive prison time, on top of his federal prison sentence. The victims deserve whatever peace-of-mind might come from knowing their abuser is staying in custody for as long as possible.”
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