Marshella Chidester faces court over Swan Boat Club accident
Following a preliminary hearing on Thursday, Marshella Marie Chidester is now on trial facing two counts of first-degree murder and six other charges in connection with an accident outside the Swan Boat Club in Berlin Township that left two children dead and several others injured.
Siblings Zayn and Alanah Phillips were killed when Chidester, 66, drove her car into the club during a three-year-old’s birthday party on April 20.
According to a lab report submitted as evidence to the court, Chidester’s blood alcohol level on the day of the accident was 0.18, more than twice the legal limit of 0.08. Chidester’s attorney, Bill Colovos, had argued that the accident was caused by an epileptic seizure his client had suffered earlier and questioned the handling of the blood taken from Chidester to test her blood alcohol level.
Much of the evidence presented consisted of video footage from nearby surveillance cameras, phone recordings from a witness at the scene, and bodycam footage from police officers at the scene.
The video footage shown included an interview at the scene between Monroe County Sheriff’s Deputy Steven Schmidt and Chidester, in which she admitted that on a scale of one to ten, she was a seven.
“I wouldn’t want to drive,” she said.
Chidester stated in other bodycam evidence presented that she had been drinking wine about 30 minutes before the accident and that she had a history of seizures. She also claimed to have no memory of the accident.
“I just fainted,” she said.
Much of the other footage presented to the court showed the moments before the accident and the chaos that followed. Civilians could be heard crying and screaming and rescue workers could be seen trying to help the injured and taking witness statements.
— Reach Connor Veenstra at [email protected]
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