DALE COUNTY, Ala. (WDHN) — A local business owner in Ozark who was facing multiple sex abuse charges saw two of those charges dismissed and two reduced to misdemeanors in court on Wednesday.

Clarence Metcalf, 58 of Ozark, was arrested in July of 2021 and charged with two counts of human trafficking first-degree, sodomy first-degree, and sexual abuse first-degree.

On Wednesday, Dale County Judge Kimberly Crawford dismissed Metcalf’s two human trafficking charges and reduced the sodomy and sexual abuse charge down to sexual misconduct, which is a misdemeanor.

Metcalf on Wednesday was sentenced to a suspended 12-month sentence in the Dale County Jail, where Metcalf will instead be placed on unsupervised probation for two years conditioned on compliance with SORNA, payment of fines and costs, and no new arrests.

In this case, Metcalf was represented by defense attorney David Harrison.