Seligman man sentenced to seven years on meth charge

(From the U. S. Attorney for the Western District of Missouri)

A Seligman, Mo., man has been sentenced in federal court for possessing methamphetamine to distribute following a high-speed pursuit by law enforcement officers that ended at a chicken farm.

Jeffery B. Stout, 37, of Seligman, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Stephen R. Bough on Tuesday, April 10, 2018, to seven years in federal prison without parole.

On Dec. 13, 2017, Stout pleaded guilty to possession of methamphetamine with the intent to distribute.

Stout was arrested on July 7, 2016, following a high-speed pursuit by law enforcement officers. A Barry County sheriff’s deputy attempted to stop Stout, who had been reported driving a red Camaro on the wrong side of the road, after the vehicle’s license plates did not match. Stout led officers on a chase with speeds up to 102 miles per hour. Stout eventually stopped after he entered a chicken farm, drove into a field, lost control, and spun out the wheels. As the wheels were spinning, officers blocked Stout from pulling forward and pulled Stout and a passenger out of the vehicle.

Officers searched the vehicle and found a Jack Daniels tin can that contained 24.6 grams of pure methamphetamine, seven baggies that contained methamphetamine, four baggies that contained methamphetamine residue, more than $1,000 in cash, various drug paraphernalia and a sparkler bomb device.

Stout has committed seven drug offenses since 2002. Those convictions started with a municipal conviction with a suspended sentence in 2002. He then went to prison for drugs in 2008 in Arkansas. In 2013, he was convicted again for drugs in Missouri, where he was put in a drug court program. His probation was then revoked concurrent to a new drug conviction in 2014 and he was sent to the 120-day treatment program in the Missouri Department of Corrections. He was discharged from probation on April 13, 2016, less than three months before the events of this case.

Stout also has a prior conviction for aggravated assault on a family member, where he pointed a shotgun at his live-in girlfriend during an argument and threatened her. He has eight prior convictions for driving without a valid license, along with prior convictions for failure to appear in court, trespassing, leaving the scene of an accident, criminal contempt and resisting arrest.

This case was prosecuted by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Jody Larison. It was investigated by the Barry County, Mo., Sheriff’s Department, the Missouri State Highway Patrol and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.