The Joplin Globe, Joplin, MO

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May 23, 2012

Suspended sentence granted to man in weapon case



A rural Joplin man has been assessed a suspended sentence for discharging a rifle in the direction of his cousin’s ex-girlfriend.

Jeremy W. Bryant, 33, 5743 Redneck Lanestet, pleaded guilty in April in Jasper County Circuit Court to a reduced charge of unlawful use of a weapon.

Bryant had been facing a more serious offense of discharging a firearm at a vehicle, which could have resulted in a prison sentence of five to 15 years. The Class D felony offense to which he pleaded guilty carried a maximum of five years in prison.

Circuit Judge David Dally assessed Bryant four years but suspended execution of the sentence at a hearing Monday. The judge placed the defendant on supervised probation for five years and ordered that he complete 75 hours of community service. The judge also ordered that he pay the victim $550 in restitution.

Bryant fired several shots from a rifle in rapid succession at the vehicle of Dana Shafer as Shafer was standing next to it on Feb. 28, 2011, according to a probable-cause affidavit. He had been waiting for Shafer at the end of her driveway as she emerged from her house after hearing gunshots outside.

The affidavit states that as she went through a gate and approached her vehicle, he told her: “You come any closer, and I will shoot you.” She told him: “Go ahead,” and he fired seven or eight shots into the vehicle, breaking two of its windows, according to the affidavit.

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