A Joplin woman charged with two counts of driving while intoxicated (death of two people) in connection with a crash Monday that killed Terry Copple, 55, and Rhonda Copple 48, of Joplin, was already facing two meth trafficking charges in Newton County with both arrests coming following vehicle pursuits by law enforcement, one in March 2020, the other in September 2019.
The 2019 arrest came after Newton County deputies determined Rita Michelle Glasgow, 30, was driving with expired plates and tried to pull her over. She fled, eventually crashing her vehicle on McClelland Boulevard.
Even while Glasgow awaited trial on the first drug trafficking charge, she was given a break in Jasper County October 10, 2019, when Judge Gayle Crane approved a plea bargain agreement with the Jasper County Prosecuting Attorney's office and gave her a suspended sentence on a felony meth possession charge. The deal included dismissing driving while suspended and drug paraphernalia charges.
The meth possession case occurred as a result of an October 6, 2017 incident in a convenience store parking lot at 2115 Connecticut Avenue, Joplin, where she was asleep in her car for more than a hour.
A search of her purse turned up 28 bags of methamphetamine, according to the probable cause statement.
Judge Joseph Hensley set bond at $150 after Glasgow failed to appear at a January 15, 2020 hearing.
After that, court hearings were delayed due to the pandemic. Her next hearing was scheduled for May 20.
Glasgow failed to show.
Hensley issued a warrant and again set her bond at $150.
Glasgow was finally arraigned June 25 on the tampering charge. The hearing was held three months after Newton County authorities arrested Glasgow on a second meth trafficking charge, which occurred after a pursuit that began in Cherokee County, Kansas, and ended on MO 86 in Newton County.
Despite the second drug trafficking arrest and Glasgow's propensity for not showing for court hearings, Judge Hensley again allowed her to remain free while awaiting trial.
Glasgow's next court appearance was scheduled for July 29. Glasgow was a no-show and Hensley issued a warrant and set bond at $10,000.
Glasgow's next hearing was September 10. She wasn't there. The judge ordered her bond forfeited.
Online court records indicate Glasgow has not appeared at a Jasper County court hearing since June 25.
Not that things were much better in Newton County.
After Glasgow's second arrest on meth trafficking charges, Judge Anna Christine Rhoades released her on her own recognizance on January 3, 2020, one year to the day before Glasgow allegedly drove drunk and killed Terry and Rhonda Copple.
Online court records show Glasgow has a clear pattern of drug arrests dating back to age 17.
A Joplin Police Department news release issued this morning indicates Glasgow is currently hospitalized as a result of injuries suffered in the double fatality crash, which occurred Sunday afternoon at the intersection of 28th and Connecticut Avenue.
Glasgow was arrested on two charges of murder in the second degree, driving while intoxicated, tampering with a motor vehicle in the first degree, possession of a controlled substance (methamphetamine) and possession of drug paraphernalia
(Note: A member of the Copple family has asked me to share that there has been no gofund me or fundraiser set up for the family's expenses at this time.)Related Posts
3 comments:
There has to be a way to hold judges accountable other than the ballot box.
Nope, these are the ones appointed or desired by the republican party and most likely gaining campaign donations from lawyers representing these clients. Whole system is shot to hell in hand basket with normal citizens getting hit.
Gotta check and see if she had a well connected repube defense attorney at some point in the past...
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