Joplin man waives hearing on firearm charge

Jeff Lehr, The Joplin Globe, Mo.
·1 min read

Feb. 27—A Joplin man waived a preliminary hearing this week on a felony count of possessing a firearm as a felon and a misdemeanor count of assault.

Joseph D. Pryor, 28, waived the hearing Thursday in Jasper County Circuit Court and was ordered to stand trial. His initial appearance in a trial division was set for March 29.

The charges stem from an arrest Dec. 27 in Duenweg and subsequent incident at the Jasper County Jail in Carthage.

A probable-cause affidavit states a police officer came upon Pryor asleep in a running vehicle at a gas pump outside the Casey's store in Duenweg and spotted a handgun in the vehicle. He was arrested when the officer learned that Pryor had a prior drug conviction in Jasper County and is prohibited from possessing firearms.

The assault count pertains to an incident later the same day at the jail where Pryor purportedly attacked another inmate, hitting him three or four times, as the other man was stretched out on a bench in a holding cell.

Jeff Lehr is a reporter for The Joplin Globe.