Fort Worth woman sentenced for dealing drugs, driving intoxicated with small kids

A Fort Worth woman who had a rollover accident in January 2023 while transporting three small children and a large quantity of illegal drugs has been given two 50-year prison sentences in Parker County, officials say.

Twenty-nine-year-old Hanna Springstead pleaded guilty to driving while intoxicated with a child passenger and the drug charges in July, Parker County District Attorney Jeff Swain said in a news release Friday. Springstead opted for a bench trial instead of a jury trial, and 43rd District Court Judge Craig Towson handed down her sentence Thursday.

During the trial, Azle police officers described finding Springstead outside her 2008 Chevrolet Impala in the early hours of Jan. 6, 2023, the release said. The vehicle had rolled on its side on Highway 199, and three young children were still inside.

The children, ranging from 8 months to 5 years of age, were in car seats that weren’t attached to the vehicle. The officers had to use a glass-punch device to get in through the rear window and rescue the children, according to the release.

Springstead’s blood alcohol concentration was found to be under the legal limit, but she also had methamphetamine and THC in her system, which added up to “a pretty significant level of intoxication,” Swain said in the release.

“This was a very serious offense involving a verified drug dealer that could have resulted in the deaths of three young children,” Swain said. “Miraculously, no one suffered serious injuries in the accident.”

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One of the officers who entered the vehicle to help rescue the children emerged with a bag of fentanyl pills caught on his pistol, the release said. Police investigated the vehicle further and found a backpack, glass jar, cookie tin and a bag, all containing multiple drugs. They also found a partly consumed bottle of Fireball whiskey, a notebook listing “a multitude of drug transactions” and $873 in cash.

“From what we found, it appeared that Ms. Springstead was a significant drug dealer in the Azle area,” Assistant District Attorney Ryan Whyte said at the trial, according to the release.

The drug charges against Springstead included possession of 125 grams of methamphetamine and 34 grams of psilocin with intent to deliver, possession of 15 fentanyl pills and less than a gram of MDMA, the release said.

Springstead will be eligible for parole after 12-and-a-half years of actual time served plus good time credit, according to the release. The Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles will have the final say on whether or not Springstead is released at that time.

“Judge Towson’s sentence reflects the danger posed to our community by this defendant’s intoxicated driving and drug dealing,” Swain said in the release. “That is especially true for the fentanyl, which has been causing so many fatal overdoses in our county in recent years.”