Repeat offender charged for driving without license–again

A Tecumseh man with a history of driving offenses is again facing felony charges after being stopped earlier this month in Brixey. Joshua Benson, 51, is charged with driving with a suspended license (felony level) following an April 3 traffic stop.

According to a probable cause statement filed by Ozark County Deputy Hunter Ryan, the officer was on general patrol in the N Highway area when he spotted Benson driving a white Nissan vehicle he recognized from prior encounters. Ryan noted he was aware Benson’s license was revoked and that he had previously been arrested multiple times for felony-level driving offenses.

Ryan conducted a traffic stop on County Road 150. During the stop, Benson told the officer he was only driving due to vehicle issues and repeatedly asked to be allowed to continue to his father’s residence.

“I advised Benson that he was currently on a traffic stop, and that we would address the vehicle after the stop was complete,” Ryan wrote.

A check through the MULES system confirmed Benson’s license remained revoked. He was arrested and transported to the Ozark County Jail, where he was booked and held for 24 hours pending formal charges.

Court records show Benson has multiple prior driving-related convictions, including driving while intoxicated resulting in injury in Ozark County in 2001, a DWI conviction in Howell County in 2013 and two recent driving while revoked convictions in West Plains in 2021 and 2022.

He also has five unrelated cases currently pending in Ozark County, including charges of hindering prosecution of a felony, multiple counts of unlawful possession of a firearm, possession of a controlled substance, unlawful use of a weapon and additional driving without a license offenses. Benson appeared for a bond reduction hearing April 7 before Associate Judge Raymond Gross and was released on his own recognizance with pretrial supervision. He is scheduled to return to court at 9 a.m. May 5 for a criminal setting.