A local man will be spending the next year and half in prison after a police traffic stop revealed a deadly weapon in his possession.

James Vern Conran, 30, of Dowagiac, was sentenced to 18 months in a Michigan prison for possession of a dangerous weapon by Judge Michael Dodge on Friday. He had pleaded guilty to this charge and a misdemeanor charge of resisting arrest on July 24.

The charges stem from Conran’s arrest on July 9. On that day, an officer with the Dowagiac Police Department stopped the man’s vehicle near the intersection of M-62 and Whitney Street after witnessing his erratic driving, Dodge sad.

The officer arrested Conran after running his information, learning that he was driving with a suspended license.

“You were handcuffed behind your back and placed in the officer’s squad car,” Dodge said. “A search into the [vehicle] revealed you to be in possession of a collapsible baton, or billy club, that under state law is considered a

deadly weapon.”

The second charge against Conran, of resisting arrest, stemmed the fact that he managed to slip his handcuffs from behind his back to the front of his body while the officer drove him into custody.

“That obviously poses more danger to the officer, and would be an indication to him that more trouble is in store for him,” Dodge said. “He had to stop, get out, and reapply the handcuffs around your back.”

At the time of his arrest, Conran was on parole from a prison sentence, which was also for possession of a deadly weapon. This was one of the many prior felony and misdemeanor convictions that the Dowagiac man has on his record, which contributed to the sentence that Dodge handed down.

“It is not impossible to overcome that kind of a bad record, but it definitely hurts you when it comes time for a new charge like this because it compounds your problems,” Dodge said. “Obviously, the court is concerned about the progression here and what’s happening, because that past history is usually a forecast of what is to come.”

Conran’s sentence will be served consecutively to his parole. He was given credit for 51 days already served for the resisting arrest charge.

Also sentenced Friday:

• Justin Eugene Stump, 29, of Elkhart to 18 months probation for multiple charges, including fleeing from police and operating while intoxicated.

• Joseph George Guntle, 55, of Dowagiac, to two years of probation for possession of a firearm by a felon.

• Derek Michael Altwine, 42, of Niles, to 270 days in jail for meth related charges.

• Michael James Seward, of Edwardsburg, to 180 days in jail for meth related charges.

• Kevin Brian Conniff, 52, of Cassopolis, to three years of probation for meth related charges.

• Joshua Warren Procter, 18, of Dowagiac, to 18 months of probation for concealment of a weapon.

• Gage Patrick Unger, 20, of Niles, to 150 days in jail for possession of marijuana.

• Alexus Michelle Mikel, 18, of Dowagiac, to 60 days in jail for meth related charges.