Woman who helped Jason Laird after prison escape given suspended sentence, probation

Kandace Newton, a woman who is said to have helped Missouri Department of Corrections inmate Jason Laird during a June 2021 prison escape and resulting manhunt, appeared during the March 9 session of Ozark County Law Day to face her charges. 

She pleaded guilty to possession of a controlled substance as part of a plea agreement and was given a suspended imposition of sentence (SIS) and placed on supervised probation for 5 years. As part of the agreement an additional charge of hindering the prosecution of a felony was dismissed. 

An SIS means that Newton does not have to go to prison. If she successfully completes probation without any violations, the charge can be removed from her record. If she violates her probation enough, the judge can change the SIS into an SES, which means she still will not be required to go to prison but the charge will remain on her record. 

Laird, a Gainesville man who is currently serving a 7-year prison sentence in three Ozark County cases, was finally arrested on N Highway in Brixey after a five-day manhunt following his escape from a work release program he participated in while in he was in prison. 

Court documents indicate that a search warrant was served at Newton’s residence Friday, June 25, 2021, in connection with the search a truck Laird had reportedly stolen after escaping. The truck was found about 300 yards away from Newton’s residence in a wooded area. The tailgate had been spray-painted blue. 

“Mr. Laird went to [Newton’s] residence, and she was comfortable enough to let him in, give him a pair of boots so he could have out of the DOC boots he had on. They knew each other and had been affiliated in the past,” Ozark County Sheriff Cass Martin told the Times shortly after Laird was captured. 

Newton reportedly told officers that Laird came to her house, dropped off the stolen truck, changed his shoes and Newton gave him a ride to N Highway in Zanoni. She said she dropped him off on the “cutoff road between N Highway and FF Highway,” according to the probable cause statement in a case against Newton. 

“[Newton] was aware that Jason Laird was an escaped prisoner and aided his escape,” the document says. 

Drugs and other illegal substances were reportedly found at the home.