ZANESVILLE, OH – A Zanesville woman has pleaded guilty to repeatedly misusing the 911 emergency system, causing significant strain on local emergency services. Kesha S. Kennedy, 34, entered her plea in the Muskingum County Court of Common Pleas on July 12, before Judge Mark C. Fleegle.
Kennedy was charged with felony disrupting public services, felony making false alarms, and 25 counts of misdemeanor misuse of 911 systems. Her actions, which began in 2020, involved nearly 400 calls to 911, fabricating various illnesses and necessitating unnecessary ambulance rides, funded by Medicaid, to Genesis Hospital.
The misuse of services by Kennedy had dire consequences. On one occasion, South Zanesville Fire Department (SZFD) responders were unable to attend to a critical call involving a person with breathing difficulties because they were transporting Kennedy based on a false claim. The individual in distress later died.
Another incident saw the SZFD understaffed at a fire scene due to their commitment to another of Kennedy’s non-emergency calls.
Kennedy’s behavior wasn’t limited to Muskingum County; she has a history of similar incidents in Licking, Guernsey, Franklin, and Cuyahoga counties. In 2023, she was found guilty of misusing the 911 system in Licking County as well.
During the court session, Muskingum County Assistant Prosecutor John Litle highlighted the need for better tracking and reporting mechanisms to prevent such abuses in the future, suggesting that emergency medical services need to report nuisance calls to law enforcement more promptly. Kennedy’s sentencing is scheduled for a later date.
