MARION COUNTY — A Marion County jury has found a 31-year-old Vernon man guilty of home invasion and possession of a firearm by a felon while his attorney was found in direct criminal contempt for alleged failure to comply with court orders.

Dean Thompson was remanded back to the Marion County Jail following the jury’s verdict Thursday. He’s been held in the county jail since his December 2018 with bail set at $250,000.

Thompson was facing two Class X felony charges of home invasion and one count Class 3 felony possession of a firearm by a felon. The jury found him guilty of one Class X felony charge – which is punishable by between 6 and 30 years in prison, and the Class 3 felony – which is punishable by between 2 and 5 years in prison.

The jury in the case was seated Tuesday and was handed the case for deliberation late Thursday morning.

The jury heard two days of testimony describing that Thompson forced his way into his ex-wife’s home while he was armed with a gun.

He’s now scheduled for a December 12 sentencing hearing in the case.

Since his arrest on the home invasion, Thompson was charged with an additional felony for allegedly harassing a witness. He’s scheduled for an October 23 preliminary hearing in that case.

The court elected to delay sanctions against Thompson’s Benton attorney Paula Newcomb until after her client’s sentencing.

She was found Thursday to be in direct criminal contempt after she reportedly introduced arguments that had been barred by the court.