After a preliminary hearing Thursday Marshella Marie Chidester is headed to trial, facing two counts of second-degree murder, and six other charges in connection with a crash that killed two children and injured several others at the Swan Boat Club in Berlin Township.
Siblings Zayn and Alanah Phillips were killed when Chidester, 66, drove her car into the club during a 3-year-old's birthday party April 20.
According to a lab report submitted to the court as evidence, Chidester's blood alcohol level on the day of the crash was 0.18, more than double the legal limit of 0.08. Chidester's attorney, Bill Colovos, had argued the crash was the fault of a seizure, of which his client had a prior history, and questioned the the handling of the blood taken from Chidester to check her blood alcohol content.
Much of the evidence presented was video taken from nearby security cameras, phone footage from a witness at the scene, and body camera footage taken by law enforcement officers on the scene.
Among the video footage presented was an interview taken at the scene between Monroe County Sheriff Deputy Steven Schmidt and Chidester, where she admitted that on a scale of one-to-10 for intoxication, she was a seven.
"I wouldn't want to drive," she said.
Chidester stated in other body cam evidence presented, she had been drinking wine about 30 minutes before the crash and had a history of seizures. She also claimed not to remember anything about the crash.
"I just, I passed out," she said.
Much of the other footage presented to the court showed the moments leading up to the crash and the chaotic scene afterward. Civilians could be heard crying and screaming and first responders could be seen trying to help those who were injured and taking testimony from witnesses.
— You can reach Connor Veenstra at cveenstra@gannett.com
This article originally appeared on The Monroe News: Marshella Chidester heads to trial for Swan Boat Club crash
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