Teen driver gets 4 months in prison for deaths of 3 in Lincoln Co. crash | State News

ST. CHARLES COUNTY — The teenager accused of killing three passengers when her speeding car crashed into a tree last year was sentenced Monday to 120 days of “shock time” in the county jail, outraged the family and friends of the victims.

Hailey G. Zenk, now 19, had entered an “Alford” or no contest plea to three counts of first-degree manslaughter, one count of DWI resulting in the deaths of two other or more persons, and one count of DWI causing serious injury. injury.

The courtroom was overflowing Monday with friends and family of the victims – four of them, including the seriously injured teenager. Several family members expressed anger before and after the sentencing.

“She's going to spend a month in jail for each of these kids,” said Douglas Meyer, whose stepson Kaeden Tyler, 15, was killed. “Absolutely ridiculous.”

But St. Charles County Circuit Court Judge Michael Fagras said he felt obligated to temper justice with mercy.

“I look at a child – and she was a child when this happened – and sometimes we are forced into maturity by the outcome of our actions, as she is,” Fagras said before sentencing her.

If Zenk violates her probation, she could spend up to 10 years in prison.

Zenk, then 17, was charged with speeding in a 2008 Ford Focus around 4 a.m. on Feb. 5, 2023, on South Chantilly Road northeast of Moscow Mills in Lincoln County. when she took off and crashed into a tree, killing Kaeden; Emily McNees, 17; and William Flickinger, 18, of Troy, Missouri.

Witnesses told investigators that Zenk had been drinking and was under the influence of marijuana the night of the crash, a Missouri Highway Patrol trooper wrote in charging documents. Prosecutors later said she had alcohol and marijuana in her system.

Zenk was driving 81 mph in a 35 mph zone just before the crash, according to court records. Passenger Trevor J. Bogert was ejected through the rear windshield of the vehicle and landed 30 to 40 feet away. Both were taken to hospital with serious injuries.

In a letter read in court, Bogert asked for the maximum sentence. He broke every bone in his body, from his neck to his ankle, he said, and spent two months and three weeks in a medically induced coma.

Trevor's mother, Jessica Bogert, said that when she first saw her son after the accident, he still had leaves and tree branches stuck in his wounds.

“I will always fear for his safety, knowing that a push, shove, twist or hug too hard, or being knocked over could paralyze him forever,” she said.

Emily's friends and family wore pink shirts depicting her with angel wings walking in the clouds, climbing a staircase to heaven.

“It's heartbreaking to see how one bad, irresponsible night can change everything forever,” Emily's father, Dakota McNees, wrote in a letter read by the prosecutor in court.

Zenk suffered head trauma and spinal injuries and has no memory of the wreck, said Nathan Steimel, his attorney. She spent six weeks in the hospital and medical records show the fentanyl and ketamine found in her system were medically administered after the accident, he said.

Zenk apologized to the victims and their families in court.

“You are the first and last thing that comes to my mind,” she said. “I’m sorry this happened. I wish this had never happened.

Fagras sentenced Zenk on five counts to a total of 38 years in prison, but then suspended him for 120 days of “shock time” in the county jail, followed by probation.

“I, too, wish this tragedy never happened, but unfortunately we are faced with the reality of the bad criminal decisions people make,” Fargas said.

Because Fagras made all five counts concurrent and the longest individual sentence is 10 years, that is the longest time Zenk would serve if she violated probation.