HENRICO COUNTY, Va. -- The woman behind the wheel of a van that crashed killing her friend in 2016 was convicted in Henrico Circuit Court, Thursday morning.
Kasie Lynn Hull entered an Alford plea during the first day of trial for involuntary manslaughter and driving while under the influence for the death of Kurt Douglas Moon, 34.
An Alford Plea means Hull understood there was enough evidence to convict her of the crime, however she did not admit guilt.
Kasie Lynn Hull (PHOTO: Henrico Police)
Hull was driving west on the Osborne Turnpike when she ran off the road and into a ditch around 2:45 a.m. on September 25, 2016, according to Henrico Police.
Moon was sitting in the front passenger seat and thrown through the windshield.
"He was run over by a vehicle and that's what killed him," Celeste Shonter, Moon's mother, read as she held her son's death certificate outside of the courthouse.
Prosecutors said Hull, Moon, and a group of friends were drinking at several Richmond bars prior to arriving at Osborne Landing to continue partying. After swimming and drinking, the group of friends decided to drive back to Richmond.
"My son got into a vehicle with the woman he knew was drunk, but she [Hull] got behind the wheel," Shonter said.
Two other passengers were sitting in the back of Hull's van that didn't have rear seats and were unharmed in the crash near River Bend Estates Drive. The defense said there was no evidence Hull was speeding.
Hull told responding officers she had not been drinking that night, but failed a sobriety test at the scene. Prosecutors said Hull's blood alcohol content was over the legal limit.
Hull told police she swerved off the road after attempting to avoid something that went into the roadway and Moon fell out of the passenger window.
There was no evidence to prove that she swerved, according to prosecutors.
Celeste Shonter is the mother of Kurt Moon who was killed in a crash in 2016.
"I don't wish bad things for Kasie," Shonter said. "My son was friends with her, so somewhere in there I know there has to be something wonderful about her."
The judge allowed Hull to remain out on bond before she is sentenced on July 21.
Family and friends remember the Richmond bartender
Moon worked as a bartender at Metzger Bar and Butchery on N. 23rd Street in Richmond and City Dogs on W Main Street in Richmond.
“It’s not going to be the same, I’m halfway expecting him to walk in the door,” said friend and City Dogs co-worker Cory Lawson a day after Moon's death. "We’re all close knit. To find out a friend of ours is gone it’s like losing a family member."
Moon worked every Tuesday night at City Dogs.
Moon wanted to teach English and dreamed about living in Colorado to be able to rock climb more often.
Shonter said they will soon visit the state where they will spread his ashes.
"Richmond lost something good in my son," Shonter said. "My son is gone and nothing can ever get them back."
