SCOTT COUNTY (KFSM) — A Scott County man was sentenced to spend about three years in prison after pleading no contest to manslaughter during a plea agreement on Monday (July 10).
Jeffery Newell, 37, was sentenced to spend 40 months in the Arkansas Department of Corrections with another 80 months of his sentence suspended, according to court documents. He has gotten credit for serving 296 days in jail already, which is about 10 months.
The sheriff’s office said Newell fatally stabbed Hugh “Hoot” Strozier, 38, on Sept. 18, 2016. Deputies responded to a house in the Nella community around 7:30 p.m. where they found Strozier dead from what appeared to be a stabbing, according to the sheriff’s office.
Three children were also present at Newell’s home where the altercation took place, the sheriff’s office said. Those children were taken into DHS custody.
Newell was originally charged with first degree murder, although the charges were downgraded to manslaughter during the plea agreement.
As requirements of the sentencing order, Newell must pay fines must not have any contact with Strozier’s family.
