Woman charged in fatal birthday party crash that killed 2 kids, injured 15 people pleads not guilty
Watch the full court proceedings from April 23 in the video at the end of this story
NEWPORT, Mich. (WTVG) - A woman facing charges after police say she crashed a car into a child’s birthday party while intoxicated, killing two kids and leaving more than a dozen people injured, pleaded not guilty on Friday.
Marshella Chidester, 66, appeared in court on July 12 where she pleaded not guilty to two counts of second-degree murder, two counts of Operating While Intoxicated Causing Death and five counts of Operating While Intoxicated Causing Serious Injury. The murder charges carry a maximum sentence of life in prison.
Chidester’s bail was continued at $1.5 million. She is due back in court on Aug. 23 for pretrial.
The April 20 crash at the Swan Boat Club in Berlin Township killed two siblings, ages 4 and 8, and left 15 others injured. Authorities identified the children who were killed as Zayn and Alanah Phillips.
The Monroe County Sheriff’s Office said first responders took nine people to area hospitals and two of them remain in critical condition, including an 11-year-old boy and a 31-year-old woman. The sheriff said other people went to hospitals in private vehicles to get checked out.
The Monroe County prosecutor Jeffery Yorkey asked for a $1.5 million bond for Chidester during her April 23 hearing, citing an alleged severe substance abuse issue and the high likelihood of conviction because of video evidence.
Chidester’s attorney countered, saying that his client has never even had a traffic ticket, has had seizures since November of last year, and was taking medication for sporadic paralysis of her legs. He said that surveillance video from Verna’s Tavern, where Chidester was prior to the crash, showed her having one glass of wine and a bowl of chili.
“My client has a history of having seizures in her legs,” said Bill Colovos, Chidester’s defense attorney. “In fact, that day, she was treated for it. So we’re burning somebody at the stake.”
The prosecutor responded, saying that Chidester’s blood alcohol content was over the legal limit.
“The defendant suffers from a very severe substance abuse issue, corroborated by friends and family members,” said Jeffrey Yorkey, Monroe County Prosecuting Attorney. “She indicated herself that she had some seizure issues and she was on some medication and that she wasn’t supposed to be drinking, but admitted she had been drinking that day.”
The Phillips siblings aunt, Raquel Smouthers, spoke at the hearing, describing what she saw after the vehicle crashed into the birthday party. She said the kids were sitting at a table eating at the time the car went 25 feet into the building.
“I had to see my deceased niece and nephew -- and them babies, I can tell you right now -- cannot have an open casket. It’s a horrible, dramatic thing. I cannot close my eyes at night without seeing the babies and what they looked like,” said Smouthers. “We were supposed to be planning a birthday party for Zayn, not a funeral.”
The grieving aunt described Alanah as a girl who loved to dance with flawless curly hair. She said Zayn loved cracking jokes and liked Eminem,
Smouthers said she had to be the one to tell her sister, Mariah Dodds, that her children had died.
“How am I supposed to live without my babies?” Dodds replied, Smouthers recounted.
Attorneys representing the family say that the mother, Mariah Dodds, and her eldest son, J.P., were in critical condition from the crash. The law firm, Marko Law, filed a civil lawsuit against Chidester and the bar investigators say she was at the day of the crash.
A crowdsourcing fundraiser was created on behalf of the family to help with expenses. A post by the organizer on Tuesday said the funeral services are on hold until Mariah and J.P. are in better condition.
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