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Felony charge leads to plea, $400 fine
McCOOK, Neb. — A McCook man arrested on a felony drug charge in 2016 was ordered to pay $400 in fines earlier this month after accepting a plea agreement admitting guilt to a pair of lesser charges.
The man, 39-year-old Ricky J. Clapp of 405 West 4th Street was fined $100 on a Class 3 misdemeanor for driving under suspension and another $300 for an infraction for possession of marijuana. Clapp accepted a plea agreement in September admitting guilt to the charges while dismissing a Class IV felony alleging possession of methamphetamine.
According to court documents, a white full-size van Clapp was driving matched a vehicle the arresting officer attempted to stop approximately a week prior. The van’s license plates were also expired, which ultimately led to a traffic stop and Clapp’s subsequent arrest.
A female driver parked and abandoned the vehicle during the prior incident, according to the arresting officer’s report.
At the time of Clapp’s arrest, a “small amount” of marijuana was discovered behind the driver’s seat of the vehicle by a second officer conducting an inventory, just prior to impounding the vehicle and while Clapp was being transported to jail.
The officer also found pieces of glass from what appeared to be a broken meth pipe. The glass had a powdery like substance on its surface which subsequently field tested positive for the presence of meth.
“Ricky has a history of drug violations and convictions that placed him in prison dating back to 1995,” according to the arresting officer’s report.
Clapp pleaded not guilty to the trio of charges in March of 2017 prior to accepting the plea agreement dismissing the felony allegation in September. He was subsequently sentenced on the two lesser charge during a Jan. 8, 2018, hearing.