Ex-deputy gets 7-year term for burglaries

POPLAR BLUFF, Mo. (AP) - A former southern Missouri deputy has been sentenced to seven years in prison for a series of break-ins.

Missouri Attorney General Chris Koster on Wednesday announced the sentence for former Oregon County deputy Dophes Barton. He pleaded guilty in March to four counts of burglary and four counts of stealing.

The crimes happened over a five-month period in late 2010. Koster's office says Barton broke into four buildings, including a Missouri Department of Transportation shed, and stole items that included an all-terrain vehicle, generators, chain saws and other tools.