(SHEARON HARRIS LAKE, N.C.) — A 10-year-old girl is dead and a woman suffered “critical injury” after a drunken boater struck swimmers in a North Carolina lake over the weekend, according to officials.
Quinten Gregory Kight, 40, has been charged with felony operating a motor vessel while under the influence, unintentionally causing serious injury to another person, in the incident on Shearon Harris Lake.
Kight was also charged with operating his motor boat on the lake negligently, endangering the life of Jennifer Ann Stahle by not looking forward in the direction of travel and being under the influence, according to court documents.
“This was a heartbreaking accident, but one that was preventable. Alcohol was a factor, and the decision to operate a boat while impaired had devastating consequences,” Chatham County Sheriff Mike Roberson said in a statement on Monday. “We urge everyone to think twice before mixing alcohol with watercraft operation. It only takes a moment for lives to be changed forever.”
Kight was arrested on Monday.
While his bond was initially set at $500,000, Kight has posted an amended bond of $250,000, according to court documents. He is not allowed to operate a motor vehicle of any kind and is subject to cam monitoring, court documents said.
Kight has been appointed a public defender but the identity of his attorney was not immediately clear from court records.
North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission didn’t immediately respond to ABC News’ request for comment.
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