Why is American Idol Star Caleb Kennedy in Jail?

South Carolina officials accused Caleb Kennedy of drunken driving resulting in death on Wednesday, Feb. 9, 2022.

According to Master Trooper Mitchell Ridgeway of the South Carolina Highway Patrol, Caleb Kennedy is accused of driving his pickup truck onto a residence in Spartanburg County on Tuesday, killing a man who was inside a building on the property.

If convicted of driving under the influence resulting in death, the country music star faces up to 25 years in prison.

Officials say Kennedy consumed marijuana from a vape pen before driving up a residential driveway and running over Larry Duane Parris outside his Spartanburg County workshop on Feb. 8.

According to The State newspaper, Kennedy’s lawyer, Ryan Beasley, claimed his client is now on suicide watch in jail and needs to be released or sent to an alcohol and drug treatment facility.

Beasley previously described the incident as a “horrible mishap” for which his client apologized profusely.

Last year, Kennedy made it to the Top 5 of the ABC talent program, but he dropped out after a video surfaced of him sitting next to someone wearing what appeared to be a Ku Klux Klan hood.

“It depicted acts that were not meant to be taken in that way,” Kennedy said at the time, apologizing for the video.