Lawyer Abandones Fight to Get DUI Charge Against Her Dismissed

According to The Times Herald, a Whitpain lawyer has dropped her contest of a DUI charge filed against her resulting from a 2009 vehicle crash in East Norriton.

According to court records, on the morning of Thursday, May 21, 2009, 46-year-old Whitpain resident Kate M. Kelly was driving east on Township Line Road and made a "very wide right turn" onto Whitehall Road. Kelly allegedly crossed into the oncoming lane on Whitehall Road and hit another car that was stopped at a red light.

Police say when they arrived on the scene at around 10 a.m., Kelly was having trouble standing and told police she was "extremely tired." A hospital blood test revealed a blood alcohol content of 0.27% and traces of oxycodone and other prescription medications.

Kelly reportedly was involved in another traffic incident in November of 2010 where she had a 0.21% BAC.

Kelly was arguing for a dismissal of the May 2009 charges because authorities failed to schedule a trial date for her within the 365 days mandated by state law. Prosecutors countered that the delays were due to her own machinations and "circumstances beyond the commonwealth’s control."

Kelly reportedly withdrew her motion to dismiss after prosecutors said they would fight her claim that her rights were violated.

Read more about the case here.