MACON — A Bevier man faces a felony driving while intoxicated charge in Macon County Circuit Court after a Missouri State Highway Patrol trooper arrested him on Highway M east of Highway K on August 22, 2025.
Steven Gene Harre, 66, of Bevier, is charged with one count of driving while intoxicated as a persistent offender, a Class E felony; one count of careless and imprudent driving, a Class B misdemeanor; and one count of operating a noncommercial motor vehicle while unlawfully using an electronic communication device, an infraction. Macon County Prosecuting Attorney Joshua Meisner filed the complaint May 26, 2026, in Case No. 26MA-CR00154.
According to the probable cause statement filed by Trooper T. Willock, a Macon County Sheriff’s deputy first observed Harre’s 1994 maroon Mercury Grand Marquis traveling northbound on Highway K, entirely in the southbound lane, before coming to a stop in the wrong lane. The deputy attempted a traffic stop; the vehicle reportedly began moving again and was weaving before turning east onto Highway M and pulling into a private drive.
Willock reported that when he made contact with Harre, the driver had slurred speech, watery and bloodshot eyes, and a strong odor of alcohol on his breath. The trooper noted a front-to-back sway and unsteadiness on his feet. According to the probable cause statement, Harre told the trooper several times that he had been in the opposite lane because he was holding his phone and texting his girlfriend.
Willock placed Harre under arrest at approximately 8:15 p.m. and transported him to the Macon County Sheriff’s Department for processing. A breath test administered at 9:14 p.m. returned a blood alcohol content of 0.148 percent, according to the probable cause statement. Missouri’s legal limit is 0.08 percent.
The persistent offender designation is based on two prior driving while intoxicated convictions cited in the complaint: an April 18, 2024 conviction in Shelby County for an incident on December 5, 2023; and a December 6, 2000 conviction in the Circuit Court of New London for an incident on August 30, 2000.
A Class E felony in Missouri carries a possible sentence of one to four years in the Department of Corrections, or up to one year in county jail, or a fine of up to $10,000, or both imprisonment and a fine. Because the charge alleges persistent offender status, Harre would be required to serve 30 days’ imprisonment before becoming eligible for probation or parole if convicted.
Harre is summoned to appear at 9 a.m. on June 25, 2026, in Division One of the Macon County Courthouse before Judge Kristen Dawn Burks.
A criminal charge is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.