Bloomfield bail bondsman gets 12 years on meth charge

BENTON, Mo. -- A former Stoddard County bail bondsman was sentenced to 12 years in prison Tuesday after he pleaded guilty to trafficking methamphetamine.

Stanley Leon Clark Sr. of Dexter, Missouri, pleaded guilty Monday to felony second-degree drug trafficking before Presiding Circuit Judge David Dolan in Scott County, according to a news release from Stoddard County Prosecuting Attorney Russ Oliver.

The 62-year-old reportedly pleaded guilty in connection with a March 20, 2013, traffic stop by a Missouri State Highway Patrol trooper, who found about 4 ounces of methamphetamine in Clark's vehicle.

After accepting Clark's plea, Dolan, "pursuant to a recommendation of the state, sentenced (Clark) to 12 years imprisonment in the Missouri Department of Corrections," Oliver said.

Clark's case was heard via what Oliver described as a "telephonic conference" with the federal prison in Leavenworth, Kansas, where Clark is serving a 36-month federal sentence stemming from the same investigation.

Clark, who operated Stanley Leon Clark Sr. Bail Bonds at Bloomfield, Missouri, pleaded guilty to the felony of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine in federal court, said Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Tim Willis.

On May 14, 2014, Willis said, U.S. District Judge Stephen Limbaugh Jr. sentenced Clark to 36 months in prison, which will be followed by a two-year period of supervised release.

Clark's release date is April 25, 2016.