Karlsson pleads guilty to driving drunk Sentence pending for ex-UMaine coach

BANGOR – The attorney for a former University of Maine women’s basketball assistant coach pleaded guilty Tuesday on her behalf to driving drunk last year.

Katherine Karlsson, 37, of Stillwater did not appear at what the prosecutor had expected would be a jury-waived trial in 3rd District Court. She pleaded not guilty to the charge in December.

It’s now up to District Court Judge Robert E. Murray to determine whether Karlsson will serve the mandatory 48-hour jail sentence or not. Murray took the matter under advisement Tuesday afternoon.

The judge is expected to issue a decision and set a date for the sentencing by the end of the week.

Karlsson 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 0.15 percent, nearly twice the legal limit of 0.08 percent, according to the police report.

She faces a mandatory 48-hour jail sentence, a fine of $500, and a 90-day suspension of her license, which is the penalty for drivers with a blood alcohol level at 0.15 or above.

Karlsson’s attorney, Larry Lunn of Bangor, urged the judge to use his discretion and not sentence his client to jail time. He said Tuesday that her blood alcohol level was “right on the line” and within the margin of error for the equipment used to administer the breath test.

James Aucoin, assistant district attorney for Penobscot County, asked that Karlsson serve jail time. He also said that because she has no prior criminal record, Karlsson would be eligible for the alternative sentencing program.

That program allows first-time offenders to serve their jail time over a weekend without actually spending the night in a cell. Instead, they might stay at a local school or other public building and paint or do minor repairs but would not be allowed to leave the facility voluntarily.

Karlsson’s former boss, ex-Maine head coach Ann McInerney, was the only passenger in Karlsson’s 2005 blue Volkswagen Jetta, according to the trooper’s report. She refused to cooperate with the trooper and left the scene while he was questioning Karlsson.

McInerney resigned in April but did not give reasons for her resignation, according to a story published in the Bangor Daily News.

Karlsson subsequently was suspended from her job for three games and McInerney was reprimanded in a Nov. 30 letter from President Robert Kennedy. McInerney issued an apology Dec. 1.

Former UMaine women’s basketball standout Cindy Blodgett was named last week to replace McInerney.

Karlsson will be paid through June 30 but is no longer working at UMaine, Joe Carr, spokesman for UMaine, said Tuesday.