Friday, March 12, 1999
Mother in wheelchair acquitted
She's found not guilty of endangering child
BY JOHN SEEWER
The Associated Press
SANDUSKY, Ohio — A mother who gets around town in a wheelchair with her daughter in her lap was found not guilty Thursday of endangering the girl by sometimes maneuvering in city streets.
Kelly Dillery, who has muscular dystrophy, could have been sentenced to up to six months in jail and a $1,000 fine on the misdemeanor charge. The municipal court jury deliberated about four hours.
Ms. Dillery, 30, hugged her lawyers upon hearing the verdict and wiped away tears as relatives rushed from their seats to hug her. Her supporters cheered and screamed.
Moments after the verdict, she said she was “just looking forward to being with Kelsi,” her 5-year-old daughter.
Ms. Dillery said she hoped this case will help others respect people with disabilities.
Ms. Dillery was charged with child endangering after a driver told police in July that Kelsi, then 4, had hit her head on the mirror of a car.
Defense attorney K. Ronald Bailey called no witnesses in the trial. “We don't think they made their case,” he said before the verdict.
Mr. Bailey said there was no evidence that Ms. Dillery's conduct was reckless.
After the verdict, Mr. Bailey said that he hopes the case will wake people up. “The more we can learn about other people and their differences, the better off we'll all be,” he said.
Earlier in the day, Mr. Bailey said city and police officials have no idea what it's like to be in a wheelchair. “They've never sat in the seat of a wheelchair, but they can tell you what it must be like,” Mr. Bailey told the jury in closing arguments.
City Prosecutor Rob DeLamatre said Ms. Dillery was putting Kelsi in danger by strapping her on her lap.
“Did it need to be tried, sure, to test the safety standards for the child,” he said after the jury's verdict. “This has all been about safety.”
Ms. Dillery has said that she sometimes must travel in the street because some of the city's sidewalks aren't accessible to her wheelchair.
Mr. DeLamatre said police tried to cooperate with Ms. Dillery and have suggested alternative ways of travel.
Supporters of Ms. Dillery — some who also must use wheelchairs — attended the trial and hearings in the case in this northern Ohio city.
Ms. Dillery was convicted in January of using her wheelchair in a street on a different occasion. She was ordered to pay $100 in fines and court costs on a charge of being a pedestrian in the street.
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