COLUMBUS, Kan. — An area man was handed down a 14-month sentence to prison in Cherokee County District Court on Thursday.
James Eric Paul Thompson, 46, of Baxter Springs, received the sentence which came after he pled guilty to a charge of escape from custody.
In May 2022, Thompson had pled guilty to felony theft. As a result of the plea, Thompson, who was not in custody at the time of the hearing, was ordered to surrender himself to the Cherokee County Jail in August 2022, to then be transferred to the Kansas Department of Corrections and serve a 16-month sentence.
After failing to surrender, Cherokee County authorities sought an arrest warrant on Thompson for aggravated escape from custody.
In March 2023, Cherokee County Sheriff's Deputies searched a rural Baxter Springs home where Thompson was hiding. As deputies searched the residence, Thompson continued his attempt to hide, then refused to comply once he was detected. A Sheriff's K9 was deployed to assist in the apprehension.
Thompson is currently being held in the Cherokee County Jail pending transfer to the state department of corrections.
According to online records with the Kansas Department of Corrections, Thompson had previously been incarcerated in the Kansas Prison System after being convicted in Cherokee County on charges of aggravated assault, robbery, burglary and theft.
