Crash killed a 5-year-old Clearwater girl last year Ronald Bevan guilty in Kellogg accident that killed 5-year-old

Ronald Bevan was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter Friday for his role in an accident that killed a 5-year-old Clearwater girl last year on Kellogg.

Bevan also was found guilty of aggravated battery and involuntary manslaughter while driving under the influence in the wreck that killed Amber Randolph and injured her mother, Michelle.

Police say Bevan was drunk and racing a friend on westbound Kellogg last February. Bevan cut off his friend’s vehicle, which caused it to slide over the Kellogg median and into the car driven by Michelle Randolph. Amber, a kindergartner at Clearwater West Elementary School, was riding in the back seat.

Bevan, 30, was charged with second-degree murder in Amber’s death, but jurors found him guilty of a lesser offense. Either of the two more-serious convictions carry a presumptive prison sentence of 38 to 43 months for a person with no prior criminal record.

The jury delivered its verdict around 1:40 p.m. Friday after about six hours of deliberations. Following the verdict announcement, Lauralee Norman, Bevan’s aunt, expressed tearful support for her nephew.

“I love you, Ron,” she called, as deputies escorted Bevan from the courtroom.

“I love you, too,” Bevan said, glancing over his shoulder.

Norman later said she was shocked at the jury’s findings, after hearing testimony this week that Bevan exhibited few signs of intoxication following the accident.

“He did not appear to be drunk,” Norman said, referring to statements given by police officers in court. “He was coherent, he wasn’t slurring his speech … (or) staggering.”

Bevan’s attorney, Gary Owens, said Thursday that officers reported smelling “a faint order of alcohol” on his client after the accident while another noted Bevan’s bloodshot eyes. A blood test administered more than two hours after the crash showed Bevan’s blood-alcohol level to be 0.15 — nearly twice the legal limit of 0.08.

Norman said her family plans to push for an appeal in her nephew’s conviction. Owens, Bevan’s attorney, could not be reached for comment.

The family of Amber Randolph, present in the courtroom, declined comment through a spokeswoman from the Sheriff’s Office.

The District Attorney’s Office also declined to comment on the verdict, spokeswoman Sherrie Boeken said, because Matthew Noel — the driver of the truck that flew over the median and hit Michelle Randolph’s car — is scheduled for retrial Feb. 27. The jury in Noel’s first trial, last month, was unable to reach a verdict.

Bevan’s sentencing is set for March 6. He remains in custody at the Sedgwick County Jail.