8-year-old killed in crash when grandfather lets her drive
A 56-year-old man who put his 8-year-old granddaughter behind the wheel in a fatal crash has a lengthy criminal history including a conviction as a persistent DUI offender.
Dennis Meers was hospitalized for serious injuries in Sunday's crash. He just finished serving his most recent sentence earlier this year. He has been convicted of at least three DUI charges in Missouri, according to KCTV.
The Kansas Highway Patrol said that Cadence Orcutt of Troy died in the accident about 3:45 p.m. Sunday. Authorities have said Meers allowed the child to drive. She lost control and the Chevy Cobalt plunged down a steep hill. It overturned on the girl who was not wearing a seat belt.
No charges have been filed and the investigation is still pending.
According to online court records, Meers was first convicted of a DUI in 1992. In 1994, he was busted and convicted for marijuana possession.
Over the ensuing years, Meers faced a slew of other traffic, DUI and drug charges. In 2011, he pleaded guilty to misdemeanor theft. He also faced traffic charges in Kansas in 2011 and pleaded guilty to driving with a revoked license. He also faced charges of driving with a suspended driver's license in Missouri. At least four times, he was caught driving on a restricted or revoked license over a 20-year period.
Also in 1996 and 2001, Meers was arrested for DUI as a persistent offender. He faced legal issues for failing to pay child support. He was accused of violating his probation.
In 2013, he admitted to driving on a revoked driver's license and was sentenced to a Missouri prison. He was paroled in March and completed all of his obligations on July 23.
As Cadence's family plans her funeral, they are baffled as to why Meers would put his young granddaughter behind the wheel.
"I just don't understand why anyone would do that," an emotional Bonnie Chavez said Monday about the circumstances of her great-granddaughter's death.
Another great-grandmother, Virginia Stahl, didn't want to discuss Meers' past on Tuesday. But she said Sunday wasn't the first time that the 8-year-old had been behind the wheel. She said the family is weary of the negative reaction.
"Don't condemn us until you get there yourself. We're country people. We do things in the country, you know? So let us all mourn, have our peace," Stahl said.
Cadence's mother had posted on Facebook that she would have never let her daughter drive on a gravel road. She said she was blaming herself and trying to draw comfort from her faith.
