According to District Attorney Micheal Murray, on Wednesday, January 12, 2022, Stephen Wayne Meade was convicted by a Brown County jury of Felony Driving While Intoxicated. Judge Mike Smith sentenced Meade to 30 years in prison.

Assistant District Attorneys, LorAnn Garrett Newman and Alex Hunn,  presented evidence to the jury regarding a traffic accident on Austin Avenue and Poindexter on December 14th, 2018. The jury heard testimony from the driver of the vehicle who was rear-ended by Stephen Meade while her 10-year-old child was in the back seat. Former Brownwood Police Officer Kayla Moore testified she conducted a DWI investigation on scene. Sarah McGregor, a forensic chemist, testified that Meade’s Blood Alcohol Level from that night was a .217.

Investigator Kim Holland of Brownwood Police Department testified Stephen Meade had previously been convicted of Driving While Intoxicated three times. He was previously convicted in 1987 in Kerry County for an offense relating to operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated; in 1995 in Karnes County for an offense relating to operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated; and in 2014, in Brown County he was again convicted of Driving While Intoxicated. Investigator Holland also testified in 2006 in Illinois, Meade was convicted of shooting a person with a shotgun.

After the conclusion of the evidence, the jury found Stephen Meade guilty for his fourth conviction of Driving While Intoxicated.

Meade had two previous prior felony convictions making the minimum sentence 25 years and the maximum sentence life in prison.