A woman from Ohio has entered a plea after accruing charges for almost 400 911 calls. The calls, it turned out, were for “nonexistent emergencies.” The Muskingum County Prosecutor’s Office responded by accusing Kesha Kennedy of felonies and misdemeanors.
She faced 25 counts of misdemeanor 911 system misuse in addition to one felony charge of interfering with public services and one count of setting off false alarms.
On July 15, prosecutor Ron Welch made a press statement regarding the case. In it, he disclosed that on July 12, in a court appearance before Judge Mark C. Fleegle, the resident of Zanesville entered a guilty plea.
Ohio Woman’s 911 Calls Continued Out Of Control
Kesha Kennedy is charged with “using local first responders for her personal entertainment” in Welch’s press release. The 34-year-old is said to have taken an ambulance more than 300 times to the hospital! Furthermore, since Kesha paid for those unnecessary rides with Medicaid, taxpayer funds were used to fund them.
“Obviously, some type of check or balance needs to exist so that this type of abuse is more quickly reported by EMS to law enforcement because 350 pointless ambulance runs is absolutely ridiculous,” Assistant MC Prosecutor John Litle said.
According to Litle, his office launched an investigation after being made aware of the “serial 911 abuse” by South Zanesville Police Chief Mark Ross.
2020 saw Kesha Kennedy begin to perform on local 911 operators’ phones. She claimed to be ill each time she called their number. The South Zanesville Fire Department (SZFD) and other emergency responders responded to her 911 calls.
According to the press release, her non-emergencies hindered others who were “experiencing actual emergencies” from receiving assistance. In one case, SZFD responders were handling one of Kennedy’s fictitious calls and were unable to get to a man who was having trouble breathing in time. Later on, the man passed away.
“In another case, SZFD was understaffed for a fire due to personnel attending to Kennedy,” the statement said. “Kennedy called 911 multiple times every week, sometimes calling for first responders several times on a single day.”
Kesha Kennedy, meanwhile, was informed by Genesis Hospital personnel on several occasions that she had no urgent medical needs. Medicaid covered all of the visits, just like it did the ambulance rides.
What’s Next For Kesha Kennedy?
The 34-year-old was assessed by a forensic psychologist prior to entering a guilty plea. Prosecutor Litle added that they summarized her as having a chronic liar, or a “factitious disorder.”
It is anticipated that she will be sentenced later. It’s unclear if Kennedy’s history of abusing 911 calls will be taken into account by the judge.
According to the press release, she was accused of issuing the 911 system in Licking County, Ohio, and was found guilty in 2023. She pretended to lose her ability to walk or stand during an incident in August while receiving treatment at Licking Memorial Hospital. After being helped into a sitting position on a bench by emergency personnel, she then pretended to pass out.
She pretended to be asleep and was unable to understand her Miranda rights when she was questioned by police. Police confirmed she was not disabled and did not require medical attention after chatting with hospital staff.
