Man Sentenced to 26 Years in Prison for Mississippi Drunken Boat Crash
On Monday a man was found guilty of killing his father and another man during a drunken boat crash. He was sentenced to serve a 26 year prison sentence.
A picture of the sunsetting on the Ross Barnett Reservoir(Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Brad Hardy a 31-year-old man was convicted in Rankin County last week for the deaths of Mikeal Hardy, 60-years-old, and Roger Gipson, 48-years-old. According to the SF Gate, he was convicted of aggravated assault for injuring another man in the crash.
Prosecutors were able to convince a jury that Hardy crashed into other boats while trying to use his to splash people celebrating Memorial Day weekend at a sandbar on the Pearl River. The location of the sandbar feeds the sprawling Ross Barnett Reservoir and is a popular spot for water skiing and fishing in the central Mississippi area.
Hardy’s alleged defense claims that it a catastrophic steering failure was the cause of the crash.
According to information taken from the time of the crash, Assistant District Attorney Marty Miller stated after the hearing that Hardy had a blood alcohol level of .09 percent, which is above the legal limit. The test was issued almost an hour and half after the accident. This hurt Hardy’s defense because his history showed that he had three DUIs in the 1990s per District Attorney Michael Guest.
Lt. Randy Newell of the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks said after the hearing that Hardy was speeding toward the sandbar and tried to spray his father, who had done something similar earlier in the day.
Hardy wept before sentencing. He attempted to convince the judge that he wasn’t trying to splash anyone.
“Only me and God really know what happened,” Hardy who was standing in a yellow jail jumpsuit and shackles told the judge.
However, Rankin County Circuit Court Judge William Chapman wasn’t moved.
“This defendant is emotional, but it is not any remorse for what he has done. He’s emotional because he’s getting ready to go to the penitentiary,” Chapman said. He believed the testimony at trial that Hardy was trying to splash people with the boat.
Chapman told Hardy that he had a choice. And now he has to take responsibility for that choice. “You chose to drink and operate that boat the way you did. There was nothing wrong with the boat, there was something wrong with the operator,” Chapman said.
Chapman sentenced Hardy to 18 years in Gipson’s death and eight years for injuring William Hulett. Those sentences will run consecutively, for a total of 26 years. He also received an 18-year suspended sentence for the death of his father, which he will have to if he violates the conditions of his release when he gets out of prison.
If you have been injured or have lost a loved one to a drunken boating accident, you may be entitled to compensation.
Reviewed by Chris H. in 2012.