Sara Declue, 43, of De Soto has been sentenced to 10 years in prison after pleading guilty to drug charges. She also had her probation revoked from drugs charges she previously pleaded guilty to and was ordered to undergo a two-year treatment program, according to court documents.
Jefferson County Div. 4 Circuit Judge Brenda Stacey on March 25 sentenced Declue to 10 years in prison for delivery of a controlled substance and seven years in prison for possession of a controlled substance. Stacey also revoked Declue’s probation and executed two four-year prison sentences that Declue received in April 2024 after pleading guilty to two charges of possession of a controlled substance, court records show.
The sentences will be served concurrently, or at the same time, for a total of 10 years, according to court documents.
Jefferson County assistant prosecuting attorney Lindsay Whalen prosecuted the case.
According to the case’s probable-cause statement, Declue was arrested on March 4, 2023, after De Soto Police were called to the Phillips 66 gas station, 614 N. Main St., due to a woman and man slumped in a vehicle that was running and parked at a gas pump. Declue was in the driver’s seat.
Officers saw a pipe that had residue in the center console, and they found a pill on the driver’s seat when Declue got out of the vehicle. The officers also found a bag with a substance that tested positive for methamphetamine, four capsules that tested positive for fentanyl, two vials of Naloxone, which is used to reverse the effects of an opioid overdose, a scale, multiple small zip lock bags and other drug paraphernalia in Declue’s purse, the report said.
There was a total of 26.17 grams of meth, and many of the items in the purse are commonly used for delivering and distributing controlled substances, according to the report.
The arrest was the second time in less than a year Declue was found with illegal drugs. She also was arrested in August 2022 after a Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office deputy saw her throw something out of a 2001 Toyota Camry that was parked near the intersection of Meyer Road and Hwy. 67 south of Festus, the case’s probable-cause statement said.
The deputy found 14 pills with an unknown powder inside them in the car. He also found a bag of empty pill capsules, a prescription bottle with pills that were prescribed to a man, sleeping pills, a smoking pipe, three needles and a spoon with residue in Declue’s purse, the report said.
A brown bag that had a crystal-like substance was found outside the car where Declue was standing. The powder from the pills tested positive as fentanyl, and the crystal-like substance tested positive as meth, according to the report.