October 30, 2008 09:46 pm
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By Jeff Lehr
jlehr@joplinglobe.com
A Jasper County jury deliberated a little less than half an hour Thursday before finding a Webb City man guilty of all seven felony counts he was facing in connection with a crime spree almost two years ago.
George B. McDonald, 34, was convicted after a two-day trial in Jasper County Circuit Court in Joplin on two counts of theft, two counts of tampering with a vehicle, and single counts of assault on a law enforcement officer, resisting arrest and attempting to steal a vehicle.
McDonald’s crime spree began Jan. 29, 2007, with the theft of a car belonging to an employee of Hank’s Furniture and ended three days later with McDonald knocking a state trooper into a ditch with a stolen van in which he was attempting to make a getaway on Highway 171 south of Asbury.
Jurors heard testimony how McDonald had stolen a wallet containing the driver license and credit card of the Hank’s Furniture employee along with his car, and how he had broken into the car of a Pittsburg State University student outside her home in Asbury and stole her purse containing a credit card and bank-debit card. Thefts of credit cards and debit cards are felony offenses in Missouri.
Jurors also heard testimony how the van he was caught driving had been stolen from another woman, how Sgt. Mike Bryan of the Missouri State Highway Patrol had caught him in the act of breaking into another car left stranded in a ditch on Highway 171, and how he’d resisted arrest and fled from Bryan before finally being caught with the help of two tow-truck drivers.
The defendant faces from 10 to 30 years in prison for the assault on the officer. He could receive up to seven years for each of the theft and tampering convictions, and up to five years each for attempted stealing of a vehicle and resisting arrest.
Bryan, who sustained deep bruising to bones on one side of his body as a consequence of the vehicular assault, survived the incident and remains on active duty with the state patrol.
Sentencing date
Circuit Judge Gayle Crane accepted the verdicts and set Jan. 5 as the date for McDonald’s sentencing after completion of a sentencing-assessment report. The judge also ordered that the defendant remain in the custody of the Jasper County Sheriff’s Department with his bond increased to $250,000 from $50,000 in light of the convictions.
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