A Searcy County man has been sentenced to life in prison plus 10 years for the murder and dismemberment of his wife in 2024. As part of a plea deal, the now 76-year-old Jeffrey David Stansbery of St. Joe pled guilty and was sentenced to life in prison without parole on the charge of capital murder and was given 10 years on the charge of abuse of a corpse.
The victim was his 43-year-old wife Amanda Stansbery.
According to the probable cause affidavit in the case, the Searcy County Sheriff’s Office was contacted by officials from Cox Medical Center in Branson on Sept. 5 last year after Stansbery went there for treatment and made statements about harming a female. Searcy County law enforcement contacted the Branson Police Department and requested they go to the hospital to speak with Stansbery.
After the interview, it was learned Stansbery had possibly harmed a female, so Searcy County investigators went to the Stansbery residence in St. Joe. They began doing a search for the victim, during which it was learned the victim was possibly deceased and concealed at the residence.
A search warrant was obtained, and the sheriff’s office, along with the Arkansas State Police, began processing the residence as a crime scene.
They eventually found the victim’s dismembered body in the rear compartment of a vehicle. The body parts had been put into heavy duty plastic bags and taped up to avoid detection and sealed inside the vehicle.
During a post Miranda interview, Stansbery admitted to law enforcement he killed his wife. Law enforcement also has obtained video and photographic evidence of what appears to be Stansbery killing his wife. The affidavit says the crime happened between Sept. 1 and Sept. 5.
Stansbery also has a previous arrest out of Texas for assaulting his previous wife. He was arrested in 1999 on a charge of aggravated assault that causes serious bodily injury. He was convicted on that charge and served 17 years in prison.
Stansbery is still being held in the Searcy County Jail awaiting transfer to the Arkansas Department of Corrections.
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