Brandon K. Himes pleaded guilty today to a charge of second-degree involuntary manslaughter. Himes, of Monett, was facing first-degree manslaughter charges. He entered an “open” plea, which means sentencing is still to be determined, according to Johnnie Cox, Barry County Prosecutor. A sentencing hearing is set for May 22.
Himes was accused allegedly feeding fatal amounts of alcohol to an 18-year-old Verona woman in 2007 during a party. He allegedly poured about “half a fifth” of vodka and “half a fifth” of tequila, along with an unknown amount of beer, into a “beer bong,” or funnel, that fed into Jessica Murphy’s mouth via a hose. Murphy was found dead at the home early March 4, 2007, and had a blood-alcohol level that later was determined to be about 0.406 percent, according to authorities. The legal threshold for intoxication in Missouri is 0.08 percent.
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<img src=" http://www.joplinglobeonline.com/images/zope/courts.gif" border=0> Himes enters guilty plea in alcohol-related death
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Dog helps some get through the court process
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Jasper County 911 administrative lines down
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Mike Pound: Out-of-town adventures: texting while shopping
My wife sent me a text the other day. She and our 14-year-old daughter, Emma, were shopping. I was not. I was doing the exact opposite of shopping. I was watching a baseball game on TV.
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Dog helps some get through the court process
