Joplin Honkey sentenced to 12 years for role in meth conspiracy

A Joplin man was sentenced to 12 years in prison for his role in a meth conspiracy during a hearing today in U. S. District Court in Springfield.

After he serves his sentence, Randy Forsythe, 52, will be under supervised probation for five years.

The sentence, a longer one than Forsythe's attorney asked for, but less than the 13 years the government requested, came after a flurry of last-minute character references that were entered into the court record Tuesday.

A pastor at Lazarus Ministries praised Forsythe's character.

"I feel if given the chance, Mr. Forsythe could be a productive member of society. The short time he was here at Lazarus Ministries he obtained work, held a job and made all of our meetings. I pray the courts wil show him grace."

A disabled widow also wrote a letter supporting a lighter sentence for Forsythe and said that even while he was in jail, Forsythe was helping his friends, including finding someone who could fix her lawn mower and someone to fix her back door after "a drunk stranger kicked it in. Randy is a sweet and caring man."

A man Forsythe met at Lazarus Ministries said Forsythe changed his life and headed him in the right direction.

"Randy helped me realize that it is OK to change my life for the good and become a father instead of a gang member.

"I'm no longer a Joplin Honky. Now I'm a productive member of our community, Randy really helped me realize that an outlaw life was killing me and tearing down everyone I loved."

According to Forsythe's plea agreement, he admitted to selling meth to an undercover officer June 3, June 19 and June 21, 2019. In exchange for his guilty plea, the government dismissed a second conspiracy charge, two meth trafficking charges and a weapons violation.

Forsythe was arrested following a one-hour standoff December 4, 2019, with officers from the Ozarks Drug Enforcement Team and Jasper County SWAT, with the ODET news release referring to him as a member of the Joplin Honkeys gang.

According to the news release, Forsythe's pending warrants at that time included resisting arrest, possession of a firearm, possession of a controlled substance, assault, peace disturbance and felony fugitive hold from Oklahoma.

Forsythe has had a long record of brushes with the law dating back to 1987, when he pleaded guilty to two counts of involuntary manslaughter in connection with the deaths of Webb City couple Gregory and Bonnie Smith, a young couple whose three-year-old child was left an orphan.