Three men plead guilty in DWI cases

Darin Van Evans, Benjamin Hutchinson and Andrew Wesley Lovelace each pleaded guilty to DWI charges during the March 5 court session

Andrew Lovelace

Lovelace, 28, pleaded guilty to felony DWI causing physical injury. He was sentenced to SIS and 5 years probation. An SIS, or suspended imposition of sentence, means the defendant is placed on probation for a period of time. If the defendant follows the terms of their probation, at the end of the probation period the court will close the case and they will not have a criminal conviction on their records. However, if the defendant violates the probation, a full sentence may be invoked. Per a plea agreement, charges of leaving the scene of an accident with property damage exceeding $1,000 were dismissed.

Charges against Lovelace stem from an incident on June 2, 2024, when Lovelace crashed on Highway 160 in Theodosia.

According to the probable cause statement, prepared by Missouri State Highway Patrol Cpl. D. Johnson, at 1:37 p.m. June 2, he was notified that a driver had left the scene of the crash on Highway 160 in Theodosia. Johnson was informed that a white Jeep had crossed the centerline and side-swiped an oncoming vehicle. A dispatcher also replayed that the driver of the vehicle that was hit by the Jeep had turned around and followed it, and that they’d been informed that the driver of the Jeep was now being held at gunpoint. 

When Johnson arrived on scene he saw that Lovelace was being held at gunpoint by another man on private property, the statement says. The man was not involved in the crash, but instead was the owner of the property where Lovelace was trespassing. The officer  arrested Lovelace for leaving the scene of an accident and placed him in the right front seat of the patrol vehicle, while the officer spoke with the man on scene who had held the suspect at gunpoint. 

Johnson’s report says the man told the officer that after finding Lovelace on his property, he told him repeatedly it was private property and he wasn’t allowed and needed to leave; however, the man said Lovelace did not attempt to leave and went onto the private property, the report says. 

“Lovelace finally listened when the weapon was drawn…”

Prior to that encounter, the victim in the hit-and-run crash followed Lovelace down a private lane approximately a quarter mile where the defendant abandoned his Jeep, the officer says, and began walking back up the lane when he came in contact with the man who ended up holding him at gunpoint. 

The officer asked one of the other two to show him where Lovelace had abandoned the vehicle. He got back into his patrol vehicle with Lovelace in the passenger’s seat, and in the report he says he noticed the moderated odor of alcohol emitting from the suspect’s breath and noticed his eyes were watery and bloodshot. 

The officer found his vehicle, a white 2011 Jeep Compass. Inside the vehicle, the officer found alcohol, marijuana and drug paraphernalia.

“He informed me he had three shots of whiskey and had not consumed any alcohol since 11:45 a.m.,” Johnson said in his report. Although it’s not clear when this discussion was, the discussion with Lovelace likely occurred sometime after 2 p.m., as the call was first assigned to Johnson at 1:37 p.m.

The officer transported Lovelace back to the Ozark County Sheriff’s Department, where he was booked into the jail. He agreed to provide a breath sample, and at 4:05 p.m. the test was administered, indicated a blood alcohol content of .123 percent, nearly twice the legal limit to drive in Missouri.

Darin Evans

Evans, 52, pleaded guilty to charges of persistent DWI. He was sentenced to 4 years in the Department of Corrections, SES, 5 years probation and ordered to successfully complete DWI court. Charges stem from a Sept. 27, 2024, traffic stop on County Road 103, locally known as Ballpark Road, in Gainesville.

According to the probable cause statement, prepared by Missouri State Highway Patrol Cpl. D. Johnson, at 3:50 p.m. Sept. 27, he saw Evans driving a blue 1995 Chevrolet pickup on County Road 103, known locally as Ballpark Road, in Gainesville. 

“I knew Evans did not have a valid license (suspended) due to a previous driving while intoxicated arrest that I had worked,” Johnson said, explaining that the Sept. 27 stop was just three days after Evans’ pleaded guilty and was convicted of driving while intoxicated in another Ozark County case involving a 2023 incident. 

“I contacted the driver and sole vehicle occupant, Darin Evans, and informed him of the reason for the stop. Evans informed me he was headed to town to get fuel in his farm truck. I informed Evans he was not permitted to drive at all when he did not have a valid license.”

Johnson asked Evans to accompany him back to the officer’s patrol vehicle, where he had Evans sit while he conducted a routine computer search on his computer. It confirmed that Evans did not have a valid license and had two active license suspensions for driving while intoxicated (dated Aug. 3 and July 17). The vehicle’s registration/license plates were also not on file, as they had expired.

“I detected the odor of alcohol emitting from Evans’ person, and as he spoke, Evans attempted to open the side window, which is common for intoxicated persons to let the odor of alcohol out of the vehicle,” Johnson wrote. “Due to rain and Evans’ size, I did not bring up alcohol issues at the scene. I informed Evans that he was under arrest for driving without a valid license… and transported him to the Ozark County Sheriff’s Department for fingerprinting.”

After Evans and the officer arrived at the sheriff’s department, Johnson mentioned that he smelled the odor of alcohol and attempted to administer the horizontal gaze nystagmus test as Evans was seated on the jail’s booking bench. 

“He followed the stimulus initially as I observed equal tracking, pupil size and lack of smooth pursuit. However, when I took the stimulus to the maximum deviation, he would not follow the stimulus all the way and smiled like he knew he was thwarting the test,” Johnson wrote. 

The officer then gave Evans a preliminary breath test, which registered at .1983 percent, more than double the legal driving limit in Missouri of .08 percent. 

Evans has two prior convictions for driving while intoxicated. 

Benjamin Hutchinson

Hutchinson, 58, pleaded guilty to charges of persistent DWI. He was sentenced to 4 years in the Department of Corrections, SES, and 5 years probation with credit for time served. An SES, or suspended execution of sentence, means a defendant will be sentenced to a prison term but will be placed on probation and will not go to prison unless they violate the terms of that probation. Per a plea agreement, the original charge of aggravated DWI was lessened to the persistent DWI. 

Charges stem from a May 20, 2023, traffic stop on Highway 5, north of Gainesville.

According to the probable cause statement, prepared by MSHP Trooper W. Wadlington, on May 20, 2023, he stopped Hutchison on Highway 5 near the Barren Fork bridge for going 76 miles an hour on the highway, which has a speed limit of 60 mph. Hutchison gave the officer valid proof of insurance but said he didn’t have his license on him. When the officer asked if he had a valid license, he said he didn’t.

Hutchison reportedly told Wadlington he hadn’t drank any alcohol since the night before. He agreed to complete some field sobriety tests. 

A preliminary breath test showed a blood alcohol content of .088 percent.

During a walk and run portion, he reportedly stopped after only eight steps even though the officer asked for nine steps and did not leave his lead foot planted while making a turn, as the officer had asked. 

He did successfully recite the alphabet from letters E to P with no issues. 

The officer asked him to count backward from 89 to 64. He made a few errors in counting, repeating numbers or skipping numbers and counted beyond 64, down to 61. 

Wadlington wrote that a routine computer check showed he was revoked in Missouri with nine active actions on his driving status including multiple chemical and point revocations and two 10-year minimum denials. 

It also showed that he’d been convicted of driving while intoxicated three times (July 12, 2011, in Howell County; July 21, 2005, in Taney County; and Sept. 9, 1999, in Hollister) as well as a conviction of excessive blood alcohol content on Feb. 19, 2004, in Forsyth.