A judge has agreed to set bail for Caleb Kennedy, a controversial former American Idol contestant accused of driving into a South Carolina apartment building and fatally punching a man.
The 17-year-old singer was granted $50,000 bail and was ordered to observe house arrest, according to his lawyer, Ryan Beasley. It was his fifth attempt to secure Kennedy’s release since he was jailed in February in connection with a fatal impaired driving accident.
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The incident unfolded late at night on Feb. 8, when Kennedy threw his 2011 Ford pickup truck into a warehouse in Spartanburg County. Larry Parris was standing in the driveway, located on his own property, when he was fatally struck. Police said the 54-year-old was knocked down by Kennedy and then pushed into the building.
According to a toxicology report, the country music crooner was high on cannabis and Prozac at the time of the crash. He confessed at the time to taking a “deep draw” from his vape in the moments leading up to the fatal incident.
“We can’t wait to prove that this is a terrible accident caused by his medication,” Beasley told WYFF. “Our prayers go out to the Parris family.”
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Judges previously denied Kennedy bail, citing pending toxicology results as well as his mental condition. The singer has also been ordered to undergo metal health treatment while under house arrest.
Kennedy is tried as an adult and, if convicted, faces up to 25 years in prison. He appeared on season 19 of “American Idol” in 2020, rising to the top five.
The teenager was eventually kicked out of the competition after a video of him next to someone sporting a balaclava reminiscent of those worn by the Ku Klux Klan surfaced online.
With dispatch services