Couple arrested in deadly Triangle boat crash had history of driving-related charges
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- Quinten Kight faces charges after fatal Harris Lake crash involving swimmers.
- Investigators found 89 alcohol containers on or around Kight’s boat Saturday.
- Kight has prior DUI, speeding, and hit-and-run charges dating back to 2010.
Saturday’s deadly boat crash on Harris Lake isn’t the first time Quinten Kight or his girlfriend has been accused of driving dangerously, court records show.
Kight, 40, faces charges of serious injury by impaired boating, operating a boat in a reckless manner, felony boating while impaired and misdemeanor boating while impaired, according to court documents.
His girlfriend, 56-year-old Annemarie Flanigan, was arrested Tuesday on two felony counts of boating while impaired and one misdemeanor charge of boating while impaired, court records show. Her charges were first reported by WRAL.
Kight was allegedly intoxicated when he drove his boat into a group of three swimmers, killing 10-year-old Brooklyn Carroll and injuring Jennifer Stehle, records show. Flanigan, the owner of the boat, is charged with allowing Kight to do so.
Stehle, a social worker at West Lake Elementary School in Wake County, had her leg amputated and faces a lengthy recovery process, according to a GoFundMe posted Sunday.
Investigators reportedly found 39 empty alcohol containers in Kight’s boat and 50 containers outside the boat, according to ABC11, The News & Observer’s newsgathering partner. Police are awaiting Kight’s blood test results, ABC11 said.
But the Saturday crash wasn’t Kight’s or Flanigan’s first brush with the law.
New Mexico court records show Kight pleaded no contest Jan. 28, 2010, to driving under the influence of liquor or drugs. He completed DWI school later that year and was released from probation in November 2010.
Five years later, in Harnett County, Kight pleaded guilty to speeding. He also pleaded guilty to a speeding charge in Fayetteville in October 2017, according to court records.
And at the time of Saturday’s incident, Kight was facing charges in Moore County of felony hit-and-run resulting in injury and driving left of center in a December 2023 incident. He posted $15,000 bail in that, court documents show.
Flanigan, meanwhile, has pleaded guilty to driving-related charges at least five times in North Carolina courts, according to court records. She most recently pleaded guilty in December to having improper equipment (speedometer) on an original charge of speeding; records state she was traveling 80 mph in a 55 mph zone.
Kight lives in Vass in Moore County with Flanigan, but still has a New Mexico license, according to the conditions of his bail.
The couple remained in the Chatham County jail as of Tuesday afternoon, with Kight’s bail set at $250,000 secured and Flanigan’s set at $500,000 secured.
If Kight is released, he won’t be allowed to operate a motor vehicle and must undergo continuous monitoring for alcohol consumption, according to court documents.
Online fundraisers
Two GoFundMes are raising money for the crash’s victims as of Tuesday afternoon. The GoFundMe for Brooklyn’s family had raised over $40,000 of its $60,000 goal.
“BB was a light in every room she entered, with an infectious smile, a loving heart, and a spirit that touched everyone who knew her,” organizer Sarah Hammond wrote. “Her laughter, kindness, and energy brought so much joy to her family and friends.”
Stehle’s fundraiser, meanwhile, had raised over $80,000 of its $110,000 goal. Any donations will go to her medical bills, rehabilitation and therapy, according to the GoFundMe.
“The support from the community has been overwhelming and is deeply appreciated,” Margaret Merrill, one of the organizers, wrote in a statement shared with The N&O. “Every donation and message of encouragement is a reminder that Jennifer is not alone in this fight. We’re all pulling for her.”
A lawyer representing the Carroll family requested privacy on their behalf Tuesday.
“For the ten years that she was alive B filled our lives with joy and laughter,” the family wrote in an emailed statement. “We appreciate the support that we have received from our family, our friends and even strangers.”
This story was originally published August 5, 2025 at 1:30 PM with the headline "Couple arrested in deadly Triangle boat crash had history of driving-related charges."
