Local women rack up long list of felony charges

Heather Dawn Favell  Ste. Genevieve County Sheriff’s Department

Earlier this month, Ste. Genevieve County filed three felony charges against Jessica Marie Noel, 38, of Ironton, and earlier this year, three felony and two misdemeanor charges against Heather Dawn Favell, 40, of Farmington.

Favell is charged with felony 2nd-degree drug trafficking, felony possession of a controlled substance at a county jail, felony tampering with physical evidence in a felony prosecution, misdemeanor possession of drug paraphernalia, and misdemeanor driving while revoked or suspended.  Noel is charged with possessing a controlled substance, resisting or interfering with a felony arrest, and tampering with physical evidence in a felony prosecution. These charges make up the eighth pending case for Noel in the counties of Ste. Genevieve, Iron, and St. Francois.

A probable cause statement from the Ste. Genevieve Sheriff’s Department states that on Friday, May 12, a deputy saw a blue 2011 Hyundai Elantra traveling south on Missouri Route D.

The deputy writes in the report, “I observed the vehicle’s license plate light to not be fully illuminated, so I turned my patrol vehicle around and started following it. Once behind the vehicle, I ran the license plate through the Missouri Uniform Law Enforcement System (MULES), and it showed to have active felony warrants attached to the vehicle.”

According to the report, the Ste. Genevieve deputy pulled the Elantra over, and a woman got out of the car and ran into a nearby wooded area. The deputy states that central dispatch was notified about the woman who ran away, and then he approached the driver, who was still in the Elantra. The report says the woman driving the car, later identified as Favell, was fitted with handcuffs and placed into the back seat of the deputy’s patrol car so the deputy could look for the woman who fled.

The deputy states he followed the path of the fleeing woman into the woods and shouted commands for her to surrender herself or a police K9 officer would bite her. After a short time, the woman — later identified as Noel — allegedly gave herself up and was arrested by the deputy. The deputy states he commented to Noel about “ditching dope,” she reportedly replied that she swallowed approximately 30 “beans” of fentanyl and ran because she knew she had warrants. In the report, “beans” are defined as pill capsules.

Jessica Marie Noel St. Francois County Sheriff’s Department

“Due to this statement, I had Central Dispatch start an ambulance to my location, walked [Noel] back to my patrol vehicle where she was placed in the front seat until another deputy arrived on the scene, and she was placed in his patrol vehicle,” states the probable cause report. Favell reportedly told the deputy she had a “meth” pipe in her bra while they were waiting for the second deputy to arrive. The Ste. Genevive Deputy wrote he ran reports on Noel and Favell through MULES. Favell reportedly had a suspended driver’s license and a warrant through the Desloge Police Department. Noel allegedly had five outstanding warrants in three separate counties.

While waiting for an ambulance, the report states one deputy stayed with Noel while another searched the Elantra. Police allege drugs and drug paraphernalia were located in the car during the search. Noel was reportedly taken by ambulance to the Farmington Parkland Health Center with one deputy accompanying and was admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU). According to the report, Noel was released from police custody pending later warrants.

Another deputy who stayed with Favell reported that Favell began displaying symptoms of a drug overdose.  When asked if she had taken any drugs, Favell allegedly said she swallowed fentanyl just before pulling over. The deputy reportedly called for a second ambulance to care for Favell and gave Favell Narcan, which slowly ceased overdose effects. According to the report, Favell was fully alert and responsive a few minutes after receiving Narcan. Medical personnel arrived, checked Favell’s vitals, and retrieved the “meth” pipe – which was taken as evidence. Favell allegedly refused ambulance transport to the hospital, so she was taken to Ste. Genevieve County Memorial Hospital by the deputy.

Once Favell received a “fit for confinement” by medical personnel, she was taken to the Ste. Genevieve Sheriff’s Office and placed on a 24-hour hold. During processing, jail staff claimed more drugs and paraphernalia were found hidden beneath Favell’s chest. Favell is currently in custody at the Ste. Genevive County Jail. Bond for Favell is set at $50,000 cash or surety. Two court appearances are scheduled for Favell. The first is a plea hearing on Oct. 17; the second is a trial setting on Nov. 13. Both appearances will occur in the Ste Genevieve County Courthouse at 9 a.m. on their respective dates.

Noel is not in custody at this time. A warrant for her arrest is outstanding in this case. Noel has outstanding warrants for several other cases. Current open cases for Noel include:

Iron County

23IR-CR00001: One felony charge of possessing a controlled substance. No upcoming court appearances are listed on Missouri Case Net. Noel is out of custody on bond in this case.

St. Francois County

19SF-CR01525-01: Two felony charges of possessing a controlled substance and one felony charge of possessing drug paraphernalia. A trial setting is scheduled for Oct. 20 at 8 a.m. in the St. Francois County Courthouse. Noel is out of custody on bond in this case.

21SF-CR01015: One felony charge of possessing a controlled substance and one misdemeanor charge of possessing drug paraphernalia. This case contains four failure-to-appear (FTA) warrants. Noel is currently out of custody on bond in this case. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for Nov. 2 at 1:30 p.m. in the St. Francois County Courthouse.

22SF-CR01500: Two felony charges of possessing a controlled substance and one felony charge of possessing drug paraphernalia. No upcoming court appearances are listed on Missouri Case Net. Noel is out of custody on bond in this case.

23SF-CR00125: One felony charge of possessing a controlled substance and one misdemeanor charge of possessing drug paraphernalia. This case contains one failure-to-appear (FTA) warrant. Noel is currently out of custody on bond in this case. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for Nov. 2 at 1:30 p.m. in the St. Francois County Courthouse.

23SF-CR00632: One felony charge of possessing a controlled substance.  Noel is currently out of custody on bond in this case. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for Nov. 2 at 1:30 p.m. in the St. Francois County Courthouse.

Ste. Genevieve County

22SG-CR00643-01: One felony charge of possessing a controlled substance and one misdemeanor charge of possessing drug paraphernalia. This case contains two failure-to-appear (FTA) warrants. Noel is currently out of custody on bond in this case. An arraignment is scheduled for Oct. 3 at 8 a.m. in the Ste. Genevieve County Courthouse.

23SG-CR00783: One felony charge of possessing a controlled substance, one felony charge of resisting or interfering with a felony arrest, and one felony charge of tampering with physical evidence in a felony prosecution. An arrest warrant for Noel is active in this case. Noel is not in custody. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for Nov. 2 at 1:30 p.m. in the St. Francois County Courthouse. No upcoming court appearances are listed on Missouri Case Net.

Favell’s prior convictions in Missouri Case Net are one Desloge ordinance violation of possession of drug paraphernalia and one  Desloge ordinance violation of driving while revoked. Both cases resulted in fines. Noel’s Missouri Case Net conviction history is lengthy and includes three felonies and five misdemeanors. Most of Noel’s convictions are for drug-related charges; others are traffic violations, probation violations, and failure to appear convictions.

Jeannie Northrup is a staff writer with the Daily Journal. She can be reached at jnorthrup@dailyjournalonline.com