Lawyer accused of drug distribution pleads guilty to lesser charge

BLOOMFIELD, Mo. -- A former Poplar Bluff lawyer was placed on probation Monday after pleading guilty to a drug-related charge.

Richard James Bascom, 45, pleaded guilty as charged to the Class A misdemeanor of possession of drug paraphernalia before Presiding Circuit Judge Stephen Sharp, according to Stoddard County Prosecuting Attorney Briney Welborn.

After accepting Bascom's plea, Welborn said, Sharp sentenced him to nine months in the Stoddard County Jail, with suspended execution of the sentence, and placed him on two years' probation.

Bascom was supposed to have stood trial last week on the Class B felonies of distribution of a controlled substance (oxycodone) and possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute (oxycodone) and Class A misdemeanor of possession of drug paraphernalia.

Welborn said he and Bascom's attorney had "talked about this. I thought he would be here last Wednesday" to enter a plea, but that did not happen due to a scheduling conflict.

Since Bascom's December 2006 arrest, Welborn said, some issues developed with his case, including an audio tape that "didn't work," which led to the plea.

"It doesn't take a genius (to know) that a good case doesn't take three years to get rid of (but) on the other hand, we stuck with it and got (a conviction) on a professional type person (because) we kept pursuing the case," Welborn explained. "(Convictions) on that type of people do not happen.

"I would like to point out, we did get that done."

Welborn said Bascom pleading guilty and having a conviction on his record were the main things.

"He can't just walk away from it. ... That was just part of it, that had to be done," Welborn said.