BEVERLY OFFICER SENTENCED FOR FATAL CRASH April 7, 2008 A Peabody District Court Judge today sentenced a Beverly Police officer to three years of probation and ordered him to pay a $1,000 fine following his conviction last month for the motor vehicle homicide of a 61-year-old woman. Prosecutors had recommended that STUART MERRY, 41, be placed on supervised probation for five years and pay a $3,000 fine. Prosecutors also recommended that Merry, who was convicted March 20 in connection with the Jan. 20, 2007, death of Bonney Burns, perform 200 hours of community service aiding people who have suffered traumatic injuries in motor vehicle collisions; undergo alcohol evaluation and treatment; and submit to random alcohol testing. Judge Robert Brennan did not order the random testing but did mandate that Merry perform the recommended community service and undergo alcohol and mental health evaluations with treatment if deemed necessary. Brennan denied a motion by defense attorney Neil Rossman for a required finding of not guilty. An additional charge of unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle, incurred because Merry’s driver’s license had expired at midnight the morning of the collision, was dismissed; he faces a mandatory 15-year loss of license because of his conviction. In addition, Merry was found civilly responsible for speeding and a marked lanes violation. “No verdict and no sentence can ever fill the void that Bonney Burns’ passing left in her loved ones’ hearts,” said Suffolk County District Attorney Daniel F. Conley, whose office prosecuted the case to avoid a conflict given the defendant’s employment as a member of Essex County law enforcement. “What we as prosecutors could do was hold the man responsible for her death accountable under the laws of our state – no matter who he might be, no matter what office he might hold.” A Peabody District Court jury three days of testimony beginning March 17 and deliberated for about five hours before convicting Merry of motor vehicle homicide by negligent operation. Evidence introduced at trial by Assistant District Attorney Nicholas Walsh proved that Merry was driving his marked cruiser at about 55 miles per hour in a 30 mph zone when he crashed into Burns’ parked car as she sat inside. The force of the impact drove Burns’ vehicle up onto the sidewalk in front of her Cabot Street home, killing her. Return to the Press Releases page.