Swan Boat Club crash suspect Marshella Chidester appears in court
MONROE COUNTY, Mich. (FOX 2) - Marshella Chidester, the woman charged after crashing into the Swan Boat Club in Monroe County and killing two children in April, was in court Friday.
Chidester, 66, is charged with two counts of second-degree murder, two counts of operating while intoxicated causing death, and four counts of operating while intoxicated causing serious injury after the April 20 crash that killed two siblings and injured others.
She was bound over to Monroe County Circuit Court for trial last month. Friday's hearing was a procedural hearing where she was arraigned in the circuit court after the case moved up from district court.
During a preliminary exam last month, it was revealed that Chidester's blood alcohol content was .18, more than double the legal limit, when she drove her vehicle through the boat club during a birthday party.
Marshella Chidester to stand trial for fatal Swan Boat Club crash
Marshella Chidester will stand trial for the Swan Boat Club crash that killed two children in April.
Though evidence showed she was drunk, her attorney Bill Colovos argued that she shouldn't be charged with second-degree murder because she didn't intend to kill anyone.
"There was no intent by my client whatsoever," he said.
However, the judge refuted this claim and ordered Chidester to trial after hearing evidence from both Monroe County Sheriff's deputies and victims of the crash.
Security video showed Chidester slamming into the Berlin Township building while a children's birthday party was being held. The crash killed 8-year-old Alanah Phillips and 5-year-old Zayn Phillips and left more than a dozen other people hurt.