Persons
TYPES OF CASES THE CRIMES AGAINST PERSON'S HAS AUTHORITY OVER
The Person's Team handles both felony and misdemeanor cases involving crimes against persons. They include but are not limited to: child physical and sexual abuse, endangering the welfare of a child, sexual assaults and forcible rape, failure to register as a sex offender, domestic violence, violations of orders of protection, unlawful use of a weapon, assaults, parental kidnapping, interference with custody, stalking, prostitution and kidnapping.
WHO WORKS ON THE CRIMES AGAINST PERSON'S TEAM
The Crimes Against Person's Team has seven attorneys assigned to it. They are: Jill Patterson, Russell Dempsey, Ami Miller, Casey Clark, Jonathan Barker, and Stephanie Wan. The child abuse and sexual assault cases are handled primarily by Jill Patterson and Russell Dempsey. Ami Miller and Casey Clark are primarily responsible for the domestic violence caseload; however, all members of the Person's Division participate in the filing and prosecution of domestic violence cases due to the large volume of cases reviewed in this area of the law. In 2002, a paralegal position was added to the Person's Team for the first time. The paralegal for the Person's Division is Tara Forrester. Tara's primary responsibility is reviewing domestic violence cases before they are assigned to a prosecutor. Tara also assists prosecutors in trial preparation and courtroom presentation of trial evidence. The goal of the paralegal is to reduce the time it takes to process a domestic violence case through our office and is an additional point of contact for victims. There are two secretaries assigned to the Person's Team; Rhonda Ogden and Brandy Severance.
HOW A PERSON'S CASE PROCEEDS THROUGH OUR OFFICE
A police report is received by our office generally from any one of the following law enforcement agencies: the Springfield Police Department, the Greene County Sheriff's Department, the Missouri Highway Patrol, or any other law enforcement agency in Greene County. Once a report is received, it is routed to the data entry department, where it is logged into our case management system. The case is then assigned to an attorney on the Person's Team or to the paralegal if it is a domestic violence case. The case will also be designated as "under advisement" in the case management system at that time. The case will remain in the "under advisement" status until a charging decision has been made by an attorney. If the attorney decides to file a criminal charge on the case, a warrant or a summons will be issued and the case will receive a court case number and the case will be entered into the court system by a court clerk. The court case number will also be entered into our case management system.
If you have not already been contacted by someone from our office to come in for an appointment before a charging decision is made, you are welcome to call and set up an appointment. Your input is welcome and will be considered. However, your input is not the only factor that will determine whether or not charges will be filed. Especially in cases of domestic violence, charges will be pursued regardless of a victim's desire, where the facts and evidence warrant the filing. Factors considered in the filing of the case will include: criminal history of the suspect, the number of domestic violence related reports in our system involving this perpetrator, the severity of injuries suffered by the victim, past assaultive behavior, past and present orders of protection, threats made during and after the assault to kill or do more harm.
Once a case has been filed, the Assistant Prosecutor who made the charging decision will be primarily responsible for monitoring the case as it proceeds through the court system. This is called "vertical prosecution" and it is employed for most cases in the Person's Division. The assistant prosecutor who made the charging decision will handle most, if not all, of the court action on the case. The prosecutor will do the preliminary hearing, attend depositions, bond hearings, a guilty plea hearing, the trial and the sentencing hearing. Vertical Prosecution requires that any plea offer come from, or be authorized by, the assistant prosecutor who filed the charge and has been following the case from the beginning.
In the area of domestic violence, there are many assistants involved in the court action on any one case. Due to the volume of domestic violence cases handled yearly by our office, it is impossible for any one of the assistant prosecutor's to track a case all the way through the court system. However, Dorothy Dewitt, Tara Forrester, Ami Miller, Casey Clark and Jill Patterson are the people to contact with questions or concerns about domestic violence cases.
The Greene County Prosecutor's Office has a Victim/Witness Team that assists victims and witnesses. They can be contacted at (417) 868-4082 to respond to any questions or concerns you may have regarding your case. Dorothy Dewitt has been designated to assist victims of domestic violence and can also be contacted with your questions and concerns. In addition, if your questions concern a court date or the status of your case, you can contact Rhonda Ogden or Brandy Severance, Person's Division Secretaries.
For other questions about a specific case or crimes handled by the Person's Division, please contact any one of the individual prosecutors in our team. You will likely have to leave a message on voice mail as attorneys in the Person's Division spend the majority of their time in court, meeting with victims or workers from the agencies that investigate our cases, and are rarely in their office for any extended period of time during the day. All members of the Person's Division have voice mail and you should feel free to leave a message requesting that we contact you on their voice mail. They will respond to your voice mail message as soon as they can. Generally if the attorney is in trial or otherwise unavailable to return calls for an extended period of time, the voice mail message will reflect that.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Several agencies and organizations work closely with the Person's Team in investigating and working on our cases. Listed below is a list of some of these agencies and information on how they may be contacted.
- Child Advocacy Center
- 1111 E. Walnut, Springfield, Missouri 65806
- Phone: (417) 831–2327
- Victim Center
- 943 North Boonville, Springfield, Missouri 65802
- Phone: (417) 863-7273
- Emergency Hotline Number: (417) 864-7233 (SAFE)
- Division of Family Services, Greene County Office
- 101 Park Central Square, Springfield, Missouri 65802
- Phone: (417) 895-6000
- Child Abuse and Neglect Hotline: 1-800-392-3738 (Toll Free)
- Children's Services phone: (417) 895-6000
- Division of Family Services, Greene County Office
- 101 Park Central Square, Springfield, Missouri 65802
- Phone: (417) 895-6000
- Child Abuse and Neglect Hotline: 1-800-392-3738 (Toll Free)
- Children's Services phone: (417) 895-6000
- Juvenile Court - Greene County
- 1111 North Robberson, Springfield, Missouri 65802
- Phone: (417) 868-4008
- Court Appointed Special Advocate (C.A.S.A.)
- 833 North Boonville, Springfield, Missouri 65802
- Phone: (417) 864-7413 or (417) 864-7412
- Family Violence Center
- 519 East Cherry, Springfield, Missouri 65806
- Phone: (417) 837-7700
- Emergency Hot Line: (417) 864-7233
- Toll Free: 1-800-831-6863
PERSONS TEAM MEMBERS
Jill Patterson - First Assistant
Jill joined the Greene County Prosecutor's Office in May 1995. Before joining the Greene County Prosecutor's Office, Jill was an Assistant Public Defender. Jill received her undergraduate degree in 1990 from Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri, with a major in Political Science. In 1993, Jill received her law degree from the University of Missouri-Columbia.
Russell Dempsey - Senior Assistant Prosecutor
Russell worked for the Greene County Prosecutor's Office 2002-2003, then went to work for the City of Branson until his return to the prosecutor's office in 2005. Russell received his undergraduate degree in 1999 from Central Missouri State University, with a Major in Criminal Justice and Minor in Psychology. He received his law degree from Washburn University School of Law in 2002.
Ami Miller – Assistant Prosecutor
Ami joined the Greene County Prosecutor's Office in May 2005. Ami received her undergraduate degree in 2002 from Boston University, with a major in Psychology and History. In 2005, Ami received her law degree from the University of Missouri-Columbia.
Casey Clark – Senior Assistant Prosecutor
Casey joined the Greene County Prosecutor's Office in 2005. Casey received his undergraduate degree from Kansas State University in 2001, majoring in Pre-Medicine and Biology, with a minor in Business. He received his law degree from the University of Kansas School of Law in 2005.
Jonathan Barker - Assistant Prosecutor
Jonathan joined the Greene County Prosecutor's Office in February 2007. Jonathan received his Associate of Science Degree in Criminal Justice from Salt Lake Community College. He received his undergraduate degree from Weber State University in Ogden, Utah, with a major in criminal justice. He received his law degree from the University of Missouri - Kansas City School of Law in 2006.
Stephanie Wan - Assistant Prosecutor
Stephanie joined the Greene County Prosecutor's Office in August 2007. Stephanie received her undergraduate degree from Vanderbilt University, majoring in Women's Studies and English. She received her law degree from the University of Missouri - Columbia School of Law, in 2006.
Anna Bunch - Assistant Prosecutor
Anna received her undergraduate degree from the University of Missouri-Columbia, majoring in Journalism and Political Science. She graduated from the University of Missouri-Columbia School of Law in May of 2007. Appointed assistant prosecuting attorney in September of 2008.