Cortney Danielle Stewart is charged with 2nd degree burglary, a class-c felony. According to court documents, Buchanan County Sheriff’s investigators responded to a burglary in the 10000 block of SE Wilson Road in Easton on May 15, 2014. Detectives say they found a cigarette butt in the home that did not belong to the homeowner.
In court documents, Investigator Tami Parsons said the cigarette butt was sent to the Missouri State Highway Patrol laboratory for DNA analysis. The affidavit asserts the lab was able to connect the evidence to Stewart, who was serving time at the Chillicothe Correctional Center.
Stewart pleaded guilty in August of 2014 to distribution of a controlled substance. Buchanan County Circuit Judge Patrick Robb sentenced her to serve seven years in prison. The defendant also has prior convictions for delivery or possession of a controlled substance at a county jail and felony theft.
During a video appearance in Buchanan County court Tuesday, Associate Circuit Judge Rebecca Spencer entered a plea of not-guilty on Stewart’s behalf and scheduled the case for a preliminary hearing May 11. Stewart will will apply for a public defender. In the meantime, she will be returned to Chillicothe until the hearing in May.