Jury selection begins in fatal Current River boat crash trial

VAN BUREN, Mo. -- Jury selection began Thursday morning in Carter County in the trial of a Poplar Bluff, Mo., woman charged in connection with a boating accident on the Current River that left two people dead and three others injured.

About 80 Carter County residents were supposed to arrive at the courthouse at 8:30 a.m. Thursday to begin the selection process in the trial of Radeena Proffer, according to Circuit Clerk Cathy Duncan Terry.

Proffer, 28, is standing trial on two counts of involuntary manslaughter with a vessel, three counts of second-degree assault with a vessel and one count of first-degree endangering the welfare of a child before Presiding Circuit Judge David

Evans.

During the trial, the jurors will hear testimony surrounding a two-boat collision that occurred about 3:30 p.m. July 5 near Worley's Rock that killed Josh M. Burson, 25, and Jerry T. Mote, 11, both of Poplar Bluff.

Proffer was operating a 2005 Blazer utility boat downstream, while at the same time, Chad Mikel, 26, of Poplar Bluff was operating a 2003 Blazer utility boat upstream.

According to earlier reports, there was a bend in the river and the boat operators attempted to avoid each other but still collided. Proffer's boat reportedly struck the Mikel boat on the left side.

Burson, a passenger in Mikel's boat, was ejected and was found in the water at the crash site. He died of massive internal chest and abdominal trauma.

Mote, who was thrown from Proffer's boat, was found around 12:20 p.m. July 6 about 1 1/2 miles downstream from Worley's Rock. His cause of death was drowning.

Mote's mother, Michelle Lafferty, 32, of Poplar Bluff, was seriously injured in the collision. Her husband, Bradley Lafferty, suffered minor injuries, as did Michael Preslar, 35.

While speaking with Proffer at the scene, a Missouri State Water Patrol officer reportedly noted the smell of alcohol on her breath and noticed her eyes were glassy and pupils

dilated.

Proffer reportedly submitted to a series of field-sobriety tests, including a preliminary breath test, which indicated she was intoxicated.

Proffer was taken to the Doniphan Police Department, where she reportedly registered a blood-alcohol content of 0.123 on a breath test.

The state, represented by Ripley County Prosecuting Attorney Christopher Miller, filed an amended information with the court last week during Proffer's pretrial conference.

The amended information filed by Miller changes the wording of the accusation against Proffer to say that she was operating the boat with criminal negligence in that she was going "too fast for prevailing conditions" rather than that she "failed to keep a proper lookout."