Thomas D Lawrence, 53, of Arnold was arrested two days after he failed to appear in court.
He was scheduled to be sentenced Nov. 26 after pleading guilty to four felony charges and a misdemeanor charge earlier this year, according to court documents.
Lawrence was arrested Nov. 28, and as of Dec. 1, he was being held without bond at the Jefferson County Jail in Hillsboro, court records said.
On Aug. 21, he had pleaded guilty to two counts of unlawful possession of a firearm, which are Class C felonies; possession of a controlled substance, a class D felony; unlawful use of a weapon, a class E felony; and operating a vehicle without a valid license, a class D misdemeanor. He had been charged following separate arrests in October 2024 and January in Jefferson County, court documents show.
Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office deputies arrested Lawrence on Oct. 1, 2024. Lawrence had a gun and a substance that tested positive as methamphetamine under the driver’s seat of a vehicle that he was driving, according to the case’s probable-cause statement.
Arnold Police officers arrested Lawrence on Jan. 31 after stopping a vehicle he was driving on Hwy. 141 near Old Lemay Ferry Road because the license plates were registered to a different vehicle. Lawrence told the officers he had a gun in his waistband, and the gun was recovered, the case’s probable-cause statement said.
Lawrence is considered a prior and persistent offender and is not allowed to have a firearm after being found guilty in April 1991 of second-degree burglary and felony stealing in St. Louis County, court records show.
Because he is a persistent offender, the class C felonies may be sentenced as class B felonies, which each carry punishments of five to 15 years in prison. The class D felony is considered a class C felony, which carries a penalty of three to 10 years in prison, and the class E felony may be sentenced as a class D felony, which is punishable by up to seven years in prison.
Lawerence may be fined up to $500 for the class D misdemeanor.