Driver in fatal crash in Neosho waives hearing on DWI charge
Jun. 29—NEOSHO, Mo. — A woman accused of driving while intoxicated in a two-vehicle crash April 2 that claimed the life of 22-year-old Neosho resident Kearah Lovett waived a preliminary hearing Monday on the charge she is facing.
Stormi (Judy) Dean, 27, of Neosho, was ordered to stand trial in Newton County Circuit Court on a count of driving while intoxicated resulting in the death of another. Associate Judge Christine Rhoades set Dean's initial appearance in a trial division of the court for July 26.
According to a police report and probable-cause affidavit, Dean was driving a Chevrolet Tahoe that ran into a Nissan Altima from behind early on April 2 in the 900 block of Baxter Street in Neosho. Lovett, who was sitting in the back seat of the Altima, was killed.
The defendant purportedly admitted to police that she had been drinking and was under the influence of marijuana and clonazepam at the time. She is believed to have been driving in excess of the block's 25 mph speed limit in an effort to catch up to the Altima and was unable to stop in time when the driver of the Altima braked.
She told police that she was chasing the other vehicle because she felt its driver had threatened her father during an altercation at a residence in Neosho.
Jeff Lehr is a reporter for The Joplin Globe.
