Two people have been arrested for a drunken boat crash that killed a 10-year-old girl and left a woman with a “critical injury” in a North Carolina lake over the weekend, according to officials.
Brooklyn Mae Carroll was killed in the incident, the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission (WRC) said.
Quinten Gregory Kight, 40, has been charged with felony operating a motor vessel while under the influence, unintentionally causing serious injury to another person, in Saturday’s incident on Shearon Harris Lake.
Kight’s partner and the registered boat owner, AnneMarie Flanigan, was charged on Tuesday with felony death by impaired boating, serious injury via impaired boating and aiding and abetting boating while impaired, according to arrest documents.
Boater Quinten Kight, 40, seen here in this undated police handout, has been charged with negligently operating his boat in the waters of Shearron Harris Lake, in North Carolina, while under the influence, which endangered the life of swimmers in the lake.
Chatham County Sheriff’s Office
Kight was also charged with operating his motorboat on the lake negligently, endangering the life of Jennifer Ann Stahle by not looking forward in the direction of travel and being under the influence, according to court documents.
“This was a heartbreaking accident, but one that was preventable. Alcohol was a factor, and the decision to operate a boat while impaired had devastating consequences,” Chatham County Sheriff Mike Roberson said in a statement on Monday. “We urge everyone to think twice before mixing alcohol with watercraft operation. It only takes a moment for lives to be changed forever.”
The WRC said this was a preventable act that should not have occurred, and expressed condolences to Brooklyn’s family in a statement to ABC News.
“We remain dedicated to providing a safe environment for all N Carolinians and visitors alike to enjoy our states lakes and waterways,” the WRC said.
Kight was arrested on Monday.
While his bond was initially set at $500,000, Kight has posted an amended bond of $250,000, according to court documents. He is not allowed to operate a motor vehicle of any kind and is subject to cam monitoring, court documents said.
Shearron Harris Lake, in North Carolina
Google Maps
Court documents reveal that Kight has a history of legal troubles, including pending charges from a 2023 hit-and-run that injured Alex Myers of Vass, North Carolina. Kight was out on a $15,000 secured bond tied to that incident at the time of Saturday’s crash.
Myers, who spoke to ABC affiliate WTVD, believes if his case was taken more seriously, Saturday’s fatal incident could have possibly been avoided.
“I feel like Moore County should have stepped up and actually prosecuted this guy and maybe gave him some punishment,” Myers said. “Maybe he would have woke up. I mean, some people take longer than others to learn things. But that’s it’s really sad that a 10 year old girl had to die because … carelessness.”
Kight has been appointed a public defender, but the identity of his attorney was not immediately clear from court records.
-ABC News’ Mariama Jalloh contributed to this report
