Sunrise Beach man sentenced to 120-day program for deadly 2023 boat crash

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A Sunrise Beach man was sentenced to serve a 120-day program in the Missouri Department of Corrections after pleading guilty to a 2023 boat crash that left one person dead and multiple people injured.

Bobby Gene Childers will spend 120 days in the state prison system. He could be paroled if he successfully completes the program.

Childers entered an Alford Plea in December on the original felony charges of boating while intoxicated leading to the death of another and boating while intoxicated-serious physical injury.

According to the probable cause statement and previous reporting, officers were called to a boat crash at the 24-mile marker of the Osage arm of the Lake of the Ozarks in August 2023. A woman was found dead near the crash scene. Childers was later identified as the driver and located at Lake Regional Hospital with injuries from the crash. During their interview, deputies reported that he showed multiple signs of intoxication including slurred speech.

During the interview, Childers admitted to being the driver of the crashed boat, according to court documents. Multiple witnesses, who were passengers on the boat, stated that he was intentionally driving recklessly and they had asked him to stop, documents say. Those passengers suffered multiple injuries including broken bones from the crash, according to the statement.

If Childers fails to complete his 120-day program, he could return to prison for his 10-year sentence.