DES MOINES, Iowa — On Day 3 of Keith Jones' drag racing trial, the jury learned about the steps investigators took to find out what happened that night.
The court saw surveillance footage of Jones and Robert Miller III — who has been convicted for his part in the crash — drinking at the Wicked Rabbit before they began their drive home.
The state was able to determine what they believe Jones' blood alcohol content (BAC) was at the time of the crash using multiple factors. Jones allegedly drank two mixed drinks and had six shots before getting behind the wheel.
"Based on the drinking timeframe, the drinks that [were] consumed, the age of the person, the height and the weight, the range of blood alcohol concentration would be a .107% to a .192%," said Dr. Justin Grodnitzky, a criminalist with the Iowa Department of Public Safety.
That places Jones' BAC 1.3 to 2.4 times the legal limit of .08%.
Investigators pieced together surveillance footage to show the jury the entire route Jones and Miller took in December 2022.
During cross-examination, the defense pointed out street cameras showed the pair speeding — but claimed Miller's vehicle was consistently ahead of Jones', adding that Miller was making "riskier" moves on the road.
Following the crash, investigators began looking for a second vehicle based off of witness testimony, ultimately linking the incident to Jones.
"Before several of those Crime Stopper tips specifically named Keith Jones, some of them referenced to KJ. Then, from those, having a name and then a very vague vehicle description, we were able to do a little more research on that individual," Ofc. Bryan Wickett with the Des Moines Police Department said.
The car Jones drove that night was found in a garage in Chicago later on, though it was discovered after they'd already arrested Jones.
While the jury briefly heard from crash scene witnesses this morning, the majority of the day was spent with the investigator on the stand.