A former Mississippi Highway Patrol officer charged in the death of a Mississippi State University student has pleaded guilty to manslaughter and will not face prison time.
Kyle Lee was indicted for culpable negligence manslaughter in February for the death of 22-year-old Kaelin Kersh. Kersh, who was a MSU track and field athlete, was killed in a car wreck on May 7, 2017, when the Ford Explorer Lee was driving hit the Toyota Corolla in which she was a passenger on Highway 182.
Sixteenth Circuit Judge Jim Kitchens on Friday sentenced Lee to 10 years in Mississippi Department of Corrections, all suspended, with five years probation. Assistant District Attorney Marc Amos, who prosecuted the case, said Lee will not be able to hold a position in law enforcement ever again, and he must pay restitution in the form of $1,000 to the Kaelin Kersh Foundation at MSU.
He added the sentence was determined based on conversations with Kersh’s family who believed “the most important thing” was for Lee to take responsibility for Kersh’s death.
“I think it’s an appropriate result that reflects the family’s wishes,” Amos said.
Investigations into the crash showed that Lee, who was responding to a call about a vehicle that ran off the road, was going up to 99 mph without either his flashing police lights or siren on. The posted speed limit on Highway 182 is 45 mph.
The wreck spawned a civil lawsuit against the Mississippi Department of Public Safety. In June 2018, Mississippi 16th Circuit Judge Lee Coleman ordered MDPS to pay $500,000 to Tanequa Alexander and Noel A. Collier, two passengers injured in the crash, and the Kersh estate.
Last year, state legislators passed, and Gov. Phil Bryant signed into law, the Kaelin Kersh Act, which requires emergency responders to turn on flashing lights when going more than 30 miles per hour faster than the speed limit.
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