Arnold Woman Gets 12 Years in Prison for Killing Grandchild in Drunken Accident

An Arnold woman who was driving drunk and caused a crash that killed her granddaughter is headed to prison.

Theresa Fortner, 49, of Arnold, was sentenced Friday in St. Louis Circuit Court for the accident that happened two years ago. to more than a decade in prison for her crime.

Fortner's granddaughter, Bella Houston, was 19 months old when she was killed in the crash on July 4, 2011.

According to police, Fortner had driven from Arnold into St. Louis that day. Family had asked her not to drive.

She was exiting Interstate 55 at Loughborough Avenue about 9:15 a.m., according to police,  when she lost control and hit a street sign, a house, a tree and a fence before landing upside down.

Bella was in a car seat but suffered a brain injury and was pronounced dead the next day, according to police.

Fortner's blood-alcohol content was 0.22 percent, Fortner's blood alcohol content was more than twice the legal limit of 0.08 percent.

She was sentenced to 12½ years for murder, three years for armed criminal action and 10 years for endangering the welfare of a child. The sentences will running concurrently.