Pettis County Sheriff’s Reports for March 22, 2024

This article is compiled from reports issued by the Pettis County Sheriff's Office.

Sunday evening, Pettis County Deputies were on patrol in the area of Highway Y and Botts Road. Deputies initiated a traffic stop on a black colored Nissan for speeding. While the vehicle was travelling eastbound on Highway Y, just west of Y and 127, Deputies clocked the vehicle’s speed at 78 in a 55 MPH zone. The vehicle was stopped in the area of Highway Y and Botts Road. When Deputies made contact, a rear passenger, identified as Randy Lemler 31, of Sedalia, stated his wife had been taken to the hospital with a possible stroke. Deputies passed the driver’s information through JCOMM. The driver, John W. Marquess, 36, of Sedalia, had a Missouri driver’s license that was currently suspended. He also had two Failure to Appear warrants from the City of Sweet Springs in Saline County stemming from a citation in November of 2023. The FTA warrants were on original charges of Speeding (11-15 MPH Over) and Operating A Motor Vehicle Without Maintaining Financial Responsibility. The warrant carried a cash or surety bond of $250.00. However, because of the circumstance, Deputies chose to issue Marquess a citation for Driving While Suspended instead of placing him under arrest. As Lemler had a currently valid Missouri driver’s license, he was able to drive the vehicle to the hospital. Marquess has a court date in May 2024 on the Driving While Suspended charge.