Joplin man waives hearing on felony weapon charges
Apr. 23—A 56-year-old Joplin man on Thursday was ordered to stand trial when he waived a preliminary hearing on three felony weapon counts.
Johnnie A. Matchell waived the hearing in Jasper County Circuit Court on counts of unlawful use of a weapon, unlawful possession of a firearm and possession of an illegal weapon. His initial appearance in a trial division of the court will be on May 24.
The charges stem from an arrest May 12 when Joplin police responded to a report of a disturbance involving a weapon at 610 N. Travis Acres Road, the defendant's address.
A probable-cause affidavit states that prior to arrival at the residence, officers made contact with the victim of a shooting incident, who told them Matchell had discharged a shotgun at his vehicle and tried to break his windshield with the gun.
Officers purportedly found a shotgun with a bent barrel and broken stock during a safety sweep of the defendant's home. They also spotted a second shotgun with serial number rubbed off and a third with a barrel 4 inches shorter than allowed by law. That particular shotgun had been reported stolen, according to the affidavit.
The document further states that due to a prior felony conviction for possession of a controlled substance, Matchell is prohibited from possessing firearms.
