A 47-year-old Waverly man who recently changed his plea regarding a felony drug charge that was filed on September 15, 2020, was sentenced to nearly a decade in state prison this week.

According to a probable-cause statement, a law-enforcement officer located two hypodermic needles on the driver. Inside the vehicle, the officer located a plastic baggie with a crystallized substance inside it; two hypodermic needles; a broken glass pipe; and a metal spoon with burn marks on the bottom and residue on it.

Court documents say Dennis Earl Palmer originally was charged with a felony for possession of a controlled substance and a drug-related misdemeanor.

On July 2, Palmer withdrew his not-guilty plea and pleaded guilty to the felony charge, and the state dismissed the misdemeanor charge. The court also found Palmer to be a prior and persistent drug offender.

On Monday, August 16, a Lafayette County Circuit Court judge sentenced Palmer to spend eight years in the Missouri Department of Corrections.