American Idol contestant Caleb Kennedy is facing prison time after pleading guilty of felony driving under the influence resulting in death.
On February 8, 2022, Caleb Kennedy, who was only 17 at the time, was reportedly driving under the influence of marijuana after “hitting a vape pen.” He ran his truck off the road and into the shop next to the home. Larry Duane Parris was inside of the building talking on the phone when he was struck by Kennedy’s Ford F-150. Parris died at a local hospital a few hours later.
Kennedy faced a judge in Greenville, South Carolina, Monday (November 18, 2024) and was sentenced to 25 years in prison and must pay a $25,100 fine. His sentence was reduced to 8 years, three of which will be on home detention. He was also credited for time he has already served. The now-20-year-old will serve five years of probation and will attend mandatory mental health and substance abuse counseling.
“He’s got no record, and he was a minor when this happened,” Beasley said. “This wasn’t such an egregious act that you see most of the time, where people were drinking and driving then they hit somebody at night or going the wrong way down the road. This was a weird reaction from his prescription medicine and possibly THC.”
In a statement issued to FOX Carolina, his attorney said that Kennedy “wants to express his heartfelt sympathies to the Parris family,” and that he “accepts his responsibility for this accident and hopes for healing for everyone affected by this tragedy.”
Caleb Kennedy competed on Season 19 of American Idol.
Kennedy was only 16 when he auditioned for American Idol by singing an original song called “Nowhere.” He told producers at the time, “I want to be a legend. I want to be somebody who changes country music. I kinda want to be an outlaw too.”
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Idol judges praised Kennedy’s voice and songwriting ability, with Luke Bryan saying that his voice “tells a story far beyond a 16-year-old kid.”
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Katy Perry agreed. “You’ve got something real special. You’re a real songwriter, but you’ve got grit and gravel and crack in your voice that says, ‘I’m in pain. Someone, please come save me through this song.'”
Week after week, Kennedy continued to impress the judges and eventually made it to the Top 5 before he left the show.