Jasper County, Missouri — An Alba man enters a plea deal in connection with a DWI chase through Joplin’s streets.
Dakota Bell, 32, pleaded guilty to fleeing police and driving under the influence today (March 31).
The charge of drug possession was dismissed. Judge Joe Hensley sentenced Bell to seven years in prison, but then suspended the sentence and placed him in a long-term treatment program.
He was also ordered to pay a $1000 fine.
On October 2, last year, Joplin police attempted to stop Bell’s vehicle near 7th and Jefferson. Bell led officers on a pursuit through Joplin in the middle of the afternoon, which ended when he ran a stoplight at 20th and Connecticut and collided with another vehicle.
The driver of the other vehicle sustained minor injuries. Bell had a female passenger with him who was arrested on outstanding warrants but was never charged in this incident.
Bell has an extensive criminal record. The table below lists other cases in which Bell has received charges and convictions.
Suspended execution of sentence, or SES, is a sentencing option in which a judge sentences a defendant to jail but then suspends the sentence. Instead of being sentenced to jail, the defendant is placed on probation, which is still considered a conviction and remains on the public record.
Bell is still wanted in Kansas on felony drug and possession charges, as well as obstruction, fleeing, and criminal use of a firearm. He was on supervised probation but violated his release conditions by continuing to break the law.
Court records in Jasper and Cherokee Counties show Bell has 19 criminal cases, 18 of which resulted in guilty pleas. Despite the 18 convictions, Bell has never served a prison sentence, according to the Missouri Department of Corrections.
