Gerald P. Morris

     GERALD PHILLIP MORRIS, 39 years old of rural Mountain Home, was arrested yet again today on felony drug charges.

     Officers from several agencies went to 402 CR 1008 in the rural Mountain Home area to conduct a probation home visit on GERALD MORRIS, a parolee with Arkansas Community Corrections.  There were two outstanding arrest warrants for MORRIS for failure to appear in court on two separate prior arrests for drug offenses.  A search wavier was on file for MORRIS.

     During a search of the residence, officers found approximately 60.58 grams of methamphetamine inside a wooden box hidden in the air conditioner vent of MORRIS' bedroom.  A portion of the meth was packaged in six packages weighting between 2.5 grams and 3.9 grams and were packaged in a fashion commonly used to dispense meth on a retail or street level.  There was a measuring spoon device found that appeared to have been used to weigh and measure methamphetamine.

     Also found were several used syringes, additional drug paraphernalia, and approximately 60 grams of marijuana.  The marijuana had been separated into smaller portions commonly used for dispensing.

     GERALD MORRIS has an extensive criminal history with numerous felony convictions.  He is currently out on bond with charges pending from multiple agencies for both drug and firearms offenses, which qualifies him as a habitual offender.  Records indicate that in addition to the 39 times he has been booked into the Baxter County Detention Center, MORRIS has also been to the Arkansas Department of Corrections (ADC) 6 times and is currently on parole from a 10 year sentence.  His prison time at ADC for his multiple offenses totals approximately 37 years, but he has roughly served only 5 ½ years of his 37 years of sentences.  This does not even take into account the number of times he has been given probation in the past.

     GERALD MORRIS was taken to the Baxter County Detention Center and booked on charges of:

Possession of Methamphetamine with Purpose of Delivery - Felony
Possession of Marijuana with Purpose of Delivery - Felony
Possession of Drug Paraphernalia (3 counts) - Felonies
Possession of Drug Paraphernalia  - Misdemeanor
Habitual Offender - Penalty Enhancement
Failure to Appear (2 counts) - Felony Bench Warrants

     GERALD MORRIS has a bond of $35,000 on the new charges and is being held without bond on the Fail to Appear warrants.  He will appear before the Circuit Court to answer on October 15th.

     Agencies participating in the arrest and search were the Baxter County Sheriff's Office, Arkansas Community Corrections Fugitive Task Force, Arkansas Department of Corrections Canine Team, and the Mountain Home Police Department.

/s/ John F. Montgomery,
Baxter County Sheriff