© 2024 KGOU
News and Music for Oklahoma
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Civil Lawsuit Against School In Fatal DUI Settled

Josh Hallett

The parents of a teenager killed in a drunken driving accident after he left an Ottawa County high school campus have settled a civil lawsuit against the school district.

Duane and Donna Kerns sued the Fairland school board after their 17-year-old son was killed in a single-vehicle accident on April 20, 2011. The Tulsa World's Sheila Stogsdill reported Friday the lawsuit was settled for an undisclosed amount.

Colton Kerns was helping classmates decorate for the prom the day of the accident. He was also in the school parking lot mixing vodka and soda and drinking it.

School officials had the intoxicated teen taken home, but Kerns turned around and drove back to school.

Later he sent text messages to students containing a photo of himself wearing a prom suit with the message that “this was the last time that they were going to hear from him because he was going to outrun the police,” the affidavit states. An autopsy report showed Colton Kern’s blood-alcohol level registered 0.13. The legal limit for driving in Oklahoma is 0.08.

The parents sued the board on civil rights and negligence claims.

The Associated Press is one of the largest and most trusted sources of independent newsgathering, supplying a steady stream of news to its members, international subscribers and commercial customers. AP is neither privately owned nor government-funded; instead, it's a not-for-profit news cooperative owned by its American newspaper and broadcast members.
More News
Support nonprofit, public service journalism you trust. Give now.