Zanesville woman pleads guilty on felony charges for calling 911 nearly 400 times

ZANESVILLE, Ohio (WCMH) – A woman has pleaded guilty to felony charges after calling 911 nearly 400 times complaining of various illnesses.

According to the Muskingum County Prosecutor's Office, Kesha Kennedy, 34, of Zanesville appeared before a judge in the Court of Common Pleas and entered a guilty plea to felony charges of disrupting public services, making false alarms and 25 misdemeanor counts of misuse of 911 systems.

The prosecutor’s office release stated that Kennedy, 34, called 911 nearly 400 times between 2020 and 2023, sometimes several times a day. Kennedy reportedly complained of various illnesses and each call was handled by the South Zanesville Fire Department.

Due to the volume of calls by Kennedy, the release stated that first responders were unable to attend to a person with breathing ailments and that person later died. In another instance, the fire department was understaffed during a fire.

Kennedy reportedly called 911 multiple times every week and was repeatedly told by Genesis Hospital staff that she had no medical issues or emergencies. The hospital, however, was forced to triage her every visit, which was funded by taxpayers via Medicaid.

The Muskingum County Prosecutor’s Office said that Kennedy has a history of the misuse of emergency resources in other Ohio counties, including Franklin, Licking, Guernsey and Cuyahoga.

She was previously found guilty of misusing the 911 system in 2023 in Licking County after Newark police reported that in August of that year, officers responded to reports of a behavior emergency at Licking County Memorial Hospital. There police said she pretended she was suddenly unable to stand or walk, then pretended to be unconscious.

Kennedy will be sentenced at a later court date.