LMPD officer resigns months after driving 95 mph with no lights, sirens before fatal wreck

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Louisville Metro Police Officer Alyssa Begel resigned six months after she was involved in a fatal crash after driving 95 mph in a 45 mph zone on Fern Valley Road without her lights and sirens activated.

In a written statement Wednesday, LMPD said Chief Paul Humphrey determined Begel's 30-day suspension was "appropriate," but Begel resigned prior to the end of her disciplinary period. She's been on paid administrative leave since the crash.

An LMPD internal investigation into the crash, obtained by WDRB News in August under the Kentucky Open Records Law, showed there was no physical evidence Begel applied her brakes before the wreck.

According to the investigation, Begel was responding to an emergency call on April 2 after an EMS crew reported a patient inside an ambulance was being disorderly. Dashcam video shows Begel swerving through traffic before the impact, when her cruiser hit a black Cadillac that had pulled onto Fern Valley Road. The driver, Charles Briscoe, 61, died at the scene. Begel was injured in the crash.

Charles Briscoe's vehicle after the wreck.

A toxicology report shows Briscoe had a blood alcohol level of .173, nearly twice the legal limit. He turned into Begel's path, according to the investigation.

LMPD's Public Integrity Unit, which investigates police department members criminally, turned its case over to the Jefferson Commonwealth's Attorney's Office in early June. A Jefferson County grand jury returned a "no true bill" against Begel in Briscoe's death on July 30, meaning they declined to indict her on a charge of second-degree manslaughter in Briscoe's death.

"In any death investigation, there may be mitigating factors that ultimately lead to a determination not to criminally indict," Erran Huber, a spokesperson for the Jefferson Commonwealth's Attorney's Office, said.

LMPD's Professional Standards Unit turned over its case to Humphrey, some four months after the criminal investigation concluded. The PSU investigates LMPD policy violations by police department members.

While the criminal case wrapped up in about two months, the investigation into whether Begel violated any policies — which started April 11 — took nearly six months.

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