Sherwood man guilty in Bend girl’s DUII crash death
A Deschutes County jury convicted a Sherwood resident Wednesday of first-degree manslaughter, DUII and other charges in a 2016 crash that killed a 2-year-old Bend girl and injured five others.
The verdict came just hours after closing arguments in the week-long trial of David Fincher, who crossed the center line of Highway 20 west of Tumalo on Sept. 11, 2016 and crashed into two cars, killing 2-year-old Marley Peterson of Bend and injuring her brother, mother and three other people.
The judge ordered Fincher held without bail until his sentencing, scheduled for March 5. Under Measure 11, a manslaughter conviction can bring a sentence of up to 20 years in prison.
The girl’s mother, Sarah Peterson, gave a statement with NewsChannel 21 after the verdict, which we share here and on the air, in full:
“Clearly, there is no justice when you lose your child like this, and when so many people’s lives are turned upside down and people are injured,” she said.
“But the verdict we received today is the best that our system can do, so we’ll take it. He deserves every minute of every day behind bars — and then some.”
“We want to use this opportunity and this verdict to shed light on the growing epidemic of drunk driving accidents and fatalities in Central Oregon. So please, don’t drink and drive – call for a ride. and join the local movement ‘One Dui Too Many,’ to help this from ever happening to another family from here again.
“We would not have made it through this without the amazing support from our community, and for that we will be forever grateful.”
The jury returned unanimous guilty verdicts on 15 of the 18 charges against Fincher, including five of the eight charges of recklessly endangering another person. The ones that did not result in guilty verdicts involved dash cam video of his car weaving before the crash, as no aggrieved party was identified.
Fincher had taken the stand on Wednesday, admitting he was responsible for the little girl’s death and speaking of his struggle with alcohol addiction.
The victim’s family was in attendance throughout the trial, often hugging one another in support as Fincher recounted details leading up to the accident.
