PITTSBURGH — Madisyn O’Connor, the 24-year-old Butler native charged in a fatal accident on Route 8 in Hampton Township last February, pleaded guilty Tuesday.
O’Connor pleaded guilty to homicide by vehicle while driving under the influence, driving under the influence and failure to drive on the right side of the road, according to the district attorney’s office.
In exchange for the plea, the district attorney’s office withdrew all remaining charges and agreed to a sentence of two to five years in the state penitentiary and three years probation. O’Connor will not be eligible for the boot camp offered with the state prison drug treatment program.
O’Connor is responsible for the crash on William Penn Highway in Hampton Township that killed Kaitlyn Eckelberry, 23, of Canton, Ohio, shortly after 12:01 a.m. on Feb. 22, 2020.
A criminal complaint filed in the case said O’Connor’s SUV crossed the double-yellow line and struck a car driven by Eckelberry head-on. Medical records show her blood-alcohol level was 0.257%, more than three times the legal limit. A rapid drug screen tested positive for marijuana as well.
On April 9, 2021, Eckelberry’s father filed a lawsuit against O’Connor and the two bars — Jay’s Mount Royal Inn in Shaler and Jay’s Other Place on William Flynn Highway — where the family says she had been drinking just before the crash. According to the lawsuit, O’Connor was “visibly intoxicated” at both bars, but was still served alcohol.
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