A West Plains area man is wanted on a $50,000-bond Oregon County warrant issued Oct. 26 following a traffic crash near Rover, public court records show.
Melvin James Dale Campbell, 31, has been charged with the felonies of possession of a controlled substance, unlawful possession of a firearm and unlawful use of a weapon by possessing a weapon and a felony controlled substance, plus misdemeanor charges of failure to drive on the right side of the road resulting in an accident, and unlawful possession of drug paraphernalia. Public court records show Campbell to have a rural address off of U.S. 160 east of West Plains.
The charges were filed in Oregon County after an Aug. 14 traffic crash on M Highway, investigation into which showed Campbell to be the driver of a pickup truck that ran off the highway and struck a tree; Campbell was reported by the Missouri State Highway Patrol to have suffered serious injuries.
Tpr. L.C. Pruiett with Troop G of the patrol, Willow Springs, said in a statement to prosecutors that during a search of Campbell's pickup truck for identification of the driver, several plastic baggies containing a white crystal-like substance that field-tested positive for methamphetamine were found, plus several items of drug paraphernalia.
Campbell is a convicted felon, and therefore barred from possessing a firearm; court records show Campbell pleaded guilty in 2020 to second-degree burglary, a felony, and in 2018 to the felony charge of resisting arrest by fleeing, creating a substantial risk of injury or death.
The case is being prosecuted by Oregon County Prosecutor Justin Kelley.
