Covington woman gets 20 years for DUI crash that killed Italian tourist

August 17, 2024

COVINGTON, La. (WVUE) - A Covington woman who killed an Italian tourist in Slidell while driving under the influence of narcotics was sentenced Tuesday (June 13) to serve 20 years in prison for vehicular homicide and other related traffic offenses.

Dawn Marie Pearson, 43, was sentenced by 22nd Judicial District Court Judge Scott Gardner, after pleading guilty in March, District Attorney Warren Montgomery’s office said.

Pearson admitted driving while impaired in February 2020, when she rear-ended a Harley-Davidson motorcycle that had slowed for a school zone on US Hwy. 190. The motorcyclist -- Italian visitor Giusto Paolo -- had traveled to the United States to make a cross-country trip. Paolo was fatally injured in the crash.

Pearson initially told Louisiana State Police investigators that her vehicle had slid into Paolo due to wet pavement. But troopers noted Pearson appeared impaired, had track marks on her arm, performed poorly on field sobriety tests and fell asleep in their cruiser on the way to a hospital.

A toxicology screen later showed Pearson had been driving with a mix of narcotics in her system, including fentanyl, oxycodone, alprazolam and THC, prosecutors said.

Paolo’s daughter and son participated in Tuesday’s court hearing via Zoom from Italy, reading their victim impact statement for the judge. They said they wanted “not revenge, but justice.” They called Pearson a “murderess” for choosing to drive while impaired, but told the court they hoped she would get sober while incarcerated and “fully realize what she did.”

Pearson apologized to the victim’s children and said she hoped they could one day forgive her. She said, “I’ll have to look at myself in the mirror every day.”

Authorities said Pearson had prior convictions for DUI, cocaine possession, theft and criminal mischief. In addition to the 20-year sentence for vehicular homicide, she was sentenced to an additional 18 months for related traffic offenses and an unrelated DUI second offense.

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