HINDS COUNTY, Miss. ( WJTV ) – Opening statements began on Tuesday, April 30 in the retrial of the woman accused of causing a Hinds County crash that killed a mother and her six-month-old son .

The state argued that Beth Ann White’s blood alcohol content level was three times the legal limit. The defense argued whether White was under the influence at the time of the crash.

White is accused of causing the crash that killed Allison Conaway and her six-month-old son, Alex. Conaway’s two other children, Chelsea and Chloe, sustained life-threatening brain and spinal injuries due to the crash. The girls survived their injuries.

On Tuesday morning, three witnesses were called to give their testimony on the crash that occurred on November 1, 2021.

Kelsi Hutchins, one of the witnesses, said she and her fiancé at the time were leaving Walmart on Highway 18 when they noticed a car driving sporadically. She recounted the car was driving faster than the speed limit and driving across the median.

“I just remember a silver car driving abruptly something behind us. She almost rear-ended us. We just tried to keep up with her as much as we could. It was just so erratic and all over the place,” said Hutchins.

Garrett Hutchins, who is a certified emergency medical technician, said he saw the aftermath of the crash and rushed to assist.

“I slid into the car trying to find a pulse on her and was unable to find any on her. And so by that point, I reassessed the situation. We had different medical personnel that were around, and we had different pedestrians and bystanders who were trying to help. So at that point, it was with me being trying to help where you can,” he said.

White was indicted on four counts of aggravated DUI. She pled not guilty to the charges.

After her first trial ended with a hung jury in November 2023, the county re-indicted White on four counts of aggravated DUI and one count of DUI fourth. A fourth DUI offense is considered a felony in Mississippi.

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