CHIPPEWA FALLS — An Eau Claire man has been sentenced to 10 years in prison, along with another 10 years of extended supervision, after he was convicted of multiple drug offenses.
James T. Shafer, 33, who used to live at a home on Franklin Street, was convicted in Chippewa County Court of one count of possession of meth, and another count of manufacturing with the intent to deliver amphetamines. Wisconsin court records show that this was the ninth time that Shafer has been convicted for possession of methamphetamine in the past decade.
On Thursday, Judge Benjamin Lane ordered the lengthy prison term, and made it concurrent to a prison sentence Shafer is already serving. Shafer is incarcerated in the Jackson Correctional Institution and appeared in court via video from the prison.
As terms of his extended probation, Shafer cannot have any contact with several victims, and he cannot consume, possess, buy, sell or carry alcohol or illegal drugs or drug paraphernalia.
Shafer must participate in treatment programs set by his probation agent. He must pay $1,076 in court costs and fines and he must submit a DNA sample.
According to the criminal complaint, an officer used a confidential informant to make a controlled buy of meth from Shafer on April 18, 2024, at a home in Chippewa Falls.
“The sandwich bag of white crystal substance that [the confidential informant] turned over the investigators weighed 59.74 grams inclusive of bag weight and field tested presumptively positive for the presence of methamphetamine,” the criminal complaint reads.
Along with this case, Shafer also has an unresolved case in Eau Claire County Court, where he’s charged with maintaining a drug trafficking place and possession of meth. He is slated to return to that court on Sept. 10.
Shafer has been convicted in 15 different felony cases in Wisconsin since 2016, online court records show. Shafer’s most recent conviction was for possession of stolen property in Chippewa County Court in 2023. Along with those eight prior meth possession convictions, he also has previously been convicted of theft of movable property, fleeing or eluding an officer, and bail jumping.