Holly S. Smith, 52, of Washington has been sentenced to 15 years in prison for driving while intoxicated and leaving the scene of a fatal accident south of Arnold. Smith also lived in Barnhart, authorities reported.
Smith pleaded guilty Oct. 24 to a DWI resulting in the death of another and leaving the scene of an accident that resulted in a death. That same day Jefferson County Div. 4 Judge Brenda Stacey sentenced Smith to 15 years in prison for the fatal DWI and seven years for leaving the scene of a fatal accident, court records show.
The sentences will be served concurrently, or at the same time, according to court documents.
Smith was driving a 2019 Dodge Journey north on the West Outer Road south of El Lago Drive between Arnold and Imperial. At about 7:15 p.m. May 20, 2022, the SUV hit a 2000 Harley-Davidson Custom motorcycle from behind, killing the rider, James A. Meyer Jr., 54, of Villa Ridge, the Missouri State Highway Patrol reported.
The Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office said witnesses kept track of Smith as she fled in the SUV, making her way to the Jefferson College Imperial campus, 4400 Jeffco Blvd., where she turned around and started traveling north on Jeffco Boulevard. Arnold Police stopped the SUV on Jeffco Boulevard near Tall Oaks Lake Drive, and deputies arrested Smith, the Sheriff’s Office said.
“Witnesses were able to keep sight of Smith's vehicle until law enforcement could stop her,” the Jefferson County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office said in a Facebook post on Monday, Oct. 30. “This conviction was not only a product of great police work, but also of caring citizens.”
Jefferson County assistant prosecuting attorney Erik Allen McCreary handled the case.