Drunk driver who killed 3 denied parole

A drunken driver who killed three members of a Moab family in a 2004 crash has been denied parole.

The Utah Board of Pardons and Parole has scheduled an October 2013 rehearing for Rex Allen Cross.

Cross began drinking beer at 6 a.m. on Oct. 3, 2004, after his graveyard shift ended, according to a report prepared for his parole hearing. He continued to drink throughout the day and bought more beer just before he crashed head-on into a vehicle on state Route 128 near Moab about 1:30 p.m.

The crash killed the vehicle's driver, Kathleen Parry, 35, and her parents, James Parry, 72, and Olive Parry, 67, all of Moab. Kathleen Parry's 6-year-old daughter, Emma, survived the crash with head and facial injuries.

At the time, Cross was on probation for his fourth DUI conviction.

Cross was charged in 7th District Court with three second-degree felony counts of automobile homicide, felony DUI and four misdemeanor traffic violations. He pleaded guilty to two counts of automobile homicide and the DUI charge in a plea deal with Grand County prosecutors. He was sentenced to serve two terms of one to 15 years in prison and one term of zero to five years in prison, all consecutively.

During his Oct. 13 parole hearing, Cross acknowledged that he is an alcoholic. Since his incarceration he has completed several substance-abuse courses and become actively involved in Alcoholics Anonymous and the 12-step program run by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He has also earned his high-school diploma and 25 credits from Utah State University.

"I take full accountability for what I've done," Cross said during his parole hearing.

"Not only did I affect two families, but I affected a community, a state, and for that, I'm sorry," he said. "I deserve whatever time I get."

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