Drunk Boater Kills Ten-Year-Old, 39 Empty Beers Found Onboard [WATCH]

A North Carolina man is facing multiple charges, including the potential for second-degree murder, after authorities say he was operating a boat while intoxicated and caused a crash that killed a 10-year-old girl and severely injured a school staff member over the weekend, as reported by The New York Post.

According to Chatham County District Attorney Jeff Nieman, Quinten Kight, 40, was piloting his girlfriend’s boat on Harris Lake, roughly 25 miles outside Raleigh, on Saturday afternoon when the vessel struck swimmers in the water.

Quinten Kight found with over 30 beer cans in boat was not looking when he drove into swimmers and killed a young girl. https://t.co/vSfmn2XDvU #Truecrime pic.twitter.com/xuyABPA8lo

— American Crime Stories (@AmericanCrime01) August 5, 2025

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The collision killed Brooklyn Caroll, a fifth-grade student at West Lake Elementary School in Apex. Prosecutors said Brooklyn’s leg was severed in the impact, and she later died from her injuries.

Jennifer Stehle, 41, a school social worker at the same elementary school, was also injured in the incident and had to have her leg amputated. She remains hospitalized in stable condition.

At a court hearing Monday, Nieman told the judge that responding officers discovered 39 empty beer cans on the boat operated by Kight — including seven that appeared to have been “shotgunned,” meaning the cans were punctured for rapid drinking.

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Authorities also recovered an additional 50 containers of alcohol floating in the water.

“It was clear that Mr. Kight was impaired,” Nieman said. Officers attempted to conduct a field sobriety test, but determined Kight was unable to follow instructions. Blood test results are pending.

Kight now faces several charges, including felony boating while impaired, serious injury by impaired boating, reckless operation of a vessel, and misdemeanor boating while impaired.

⚠️ WARNING: This post contains graphic descriptions of a child’s death & severe injury.

A North Carolina boater, Quinten Gregory Kight, 40, is facing multiple charges after allegedly plowing his boat into a group of people at Shearon Harris Lake. The crash killed 10-year-old… pic.twitter.com/Y9bNoMUaNM

— True Crime Updates (@TrueCrimeUpdat) August 6, 2025

Prosecutors stated those charges may be upgraded to second-degree murder, depending on the outcome of the investigation.

Kight’s bond was set at $250,000.

On Tuesday, authorities also arrested 56-year-old AnneMarie Flanigan, Kight’s girlfriend and owner of the boat. She is charged with two felony counts and one misdemeanor count of boating while impaired for allegedly allowing Kight to operate the vessel while intoxicated.

Her bond was set at $500,000.

Court records show that Kight has a prior DUI conviction from 2009 in New Mexico. He also has pending charges related to a 2023 hit-and-run incident in Moore County, North Carolina.

The tragic incident has prompted renewed scrutiny of impaired boating laws in the state.

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