Joshua Koonce pled guilty Monday to the stabbing death of Jimmy Casey.
Stoddard County Prosecuting Attorney Russ Oliver said in a news release that Koonce entered the guilty plea 30 minutes before the trial was scheduled to begin and the state extended no plea bargain to the defense. Koonce plead guilty to the charges of murder and armed criminal action.
“We are pleased with the result of the case, given the fact that we made no concessions with regard to the charges or the sentencing range to obtain the plea of guilt. Results like this only come from strong cases that are put together right from a team of experienced investigators and prosecutors. We had overwhelming evidence of the Defendant’s guilt and a solid basis to get all of those facts into evidence for the jury to consider,” said Oliver. “A great deal of work went into bringing this week-long case to trial. Our office would like to thank the Stoddard County Major Case Squad and specifically Dexter Police Department Chief Hank Trout and Detective Cory Mills for their extensive work with our office to prepare the case and evidence for trial. We also greatly appreciate the efforts of the Stoddard County Sheriff’s Office, Dexter Police Department, Bloomfield Police Department, Advance Police Department, Bernie Police Department, the Missouri State Highway Patrol- DDCC, and each individual member of the Major Case Squad who worked tirelessly to bring the Defendant to justice.”
Koonce was charged June 28, 2018, with the murder of Casey at his home in Dexter. Koonce then fled to Colorado soon after the murder.
After Koonce entered the guilty plea, Judge Joe Z. Satterfield dismissed the 125 jurors he had summoned for the case.
“We also greatly appreciate the service of all the jurors who took time out of their day to serve in this important role,” said Oliver. “Jurors legitimize everything we do in the criminal justice system. Without the jurors’ service, this case could not have been brought to final conclusion.”
Oliver said because the state made no concessions, Koonce faces no less than 10 years to life for the murder charge and three to 15 years imprisonment for the armed criminal action charge. The armed criminal action charge is statutorily required to be served consecutive to the murder charge.