UMaine basketball coach pleads not guilty to OUI

BANGOR – The attorney representing a University of Maine coach charged with drunken driving entered a not guilty plea on her behalf Thursday in 3rd District Court.

Katherine Karlsson, the associate head coach of the UMaine women’s basketball team, did not appear in court.

Larry Lunn, a Bangor attorney, entered the plea on her behalf, a common practice for defendants facing arraignment charges in district who hire attorneys to represent them.

Karlsson, 37, of Stillwater was arrested shortly before midnight on Nov. 5 on Mount Hope Avenue in Bangor by Maine State Trooper Christopher Hashey.

Her blood alcohol level was .15 percent, nearly twice the legal limit of .08 percent, according to the police report.

If convicted, she faces a mandatory 48-hour jail sentence, a fine of $500 and a 90-day suspension of her license.

Karlsson’s options include seeking a jury or jury-waived trial or changing her plea to guilty.

“We have not decided what to do,” Lunn said.

Karlsson, who has no criminal record, would not be facing jail time if her blood alcohol content had been .14 percent or less, Lunn said after the arraignment.

The case is not expected to be resolved until after the first of the year.

Karlsson’s boss, head coach Ann McInerney, was the only passenger in Karlsson’s 2005 blue Volkswagen Jetta, according to the trooper’s report.

Karlsson was named Maine’s associate head coach on June 17, 2005, after McInerney took over as Maine’s head coach.

A 1991 graduate of UMaine, Karlsson played three seasons for the Black Bears (1987-90). She played high school basketball for Edward Little of Auburn.