Drunk stepdad sat and cried instead of trying to rescue dying boy from submerged car

Michael Guest crashed his Ford into a deep pond, then stood back and sobbed instead of trying to save his stepson Tyler from dying

A drink-driving stepdad lay crying hysterically instead of trying to help free his dying stepson from the car he’d just crashed.

Michael Guest, 39, was jailed for seven years Monday after admitting the manslaughter of 11 year-old Tyler Hammett in Bentonville, Arkansas, last January.

Emergency responders called to the scene discovered Guest’s wrecked Ford F150 overturned and submerged in a pond.

Guest had managed to escape the the truck, and was seen crying hysterically instead of making any effort to try and rescue Tyler.

He told rescuers that Tyler was still inside the vehicle, with emergency services quickly turning the truck on its side and freeing the youngster.

Tyler was rushed to a nearby hospital, then airlifted to St Francis Hospital in Tulsa, Oklahoma, where he later died.

It is unclear whether he was killed by the impact of the crash, or from being left to drown in the water by his dad.

A cop at the scene said he smelt booze on Guest’s breath, and later overheard the stepdad telling a nurse he’d had three or four alcoholic drinks shortly before getting behind the wheel.

His car rocketed through a cinder block barrier and into the pond without stopping, the Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reported.

A chilling photo taken after Tyler was rescued showed the Ford half submerged in the dark water with its tail lights still on.

Guest struck a plea deal which also saw him admit endangering the welfare of a minor and driving while intoxicated.

He will serve seven years in the Arkansas Department of Correction, and must abide by a suspended sentence agreement for a further 12 years after being released from prison.