Miami Student Fined In Crash That Left Motorcyclist Seriously Injured

BY CARLEIGH TURNER
Miami University journalism student

A Miami University student pleaded no contest Thursday to charges related to a car accident that severed a woman's leg.

Miami junior Kasey O’Brien was ticketed for failing to yield at stop sign and for driving with an obstructed view. She was fined $40 on each citation.

No contest means O'Brien did not contest the charges, but nor did she plead guilty to them either.

O'Brien's Rav4 hit motorcyclist Ann Fluegeman Brock on Oct. 29, leaving the Eaton woman with a severed left leg. According to police reports, O'Brien was driving east on Withrow Street, stopped at the intersection with College Avenue, when she moved into the intersection without seeing Brock.

After entering her plea in Butler County Court in Uptown Oxford, O'Brien said her "main concern is how Ann Brock is doing."

"Her family is in our thoughts and prayers,” she said.

Brock, 51, is a veteran firefighter and emergency medical technician in Monroe, Ohio.

O'Brien had five passengers in her car at the time of the accident, each of whom was also ticketed, according to the Oxford Police Department.

Twin sisters Marie Meadows and Molly Meadows, also Miami juniors, were charged with obstructing the driver’s view and not wearing a seat belt. Cincinnati attorney Rick Weil entered a guilty plea for both on just the seat belt charge, a court official said. Neither student attended the hearing.

The three other passengers entered pleas in advance of the hearing and did not attend Thursday's court hearing:

• Miami junior Shelby Henderson pled guilty and paid a fine of $40 for having an open container in the vehicle and $20 for not wearing a seat belt.
• Kelly Gallagher, also a Miami junior, pled guilty for not wearing a seat belt. She paid a $20 fine.
• Evan Gallagher, a Cincinnati resident, pled guilty for not wearing a seat belt and also paid a $20 fine.