A Florida woman is facing a felony charge nearly a year after authorities say she struck a man with her car, dragged his body dozens of feet down a roadway — and then continued on to work her shift at McDonald’s.

Kerri Walden, 44, was arrested on Feb. 23 by the Florida Highway Patrol in connection with the April 15, 2025 death of 45-year-old Jacob Mull. She has been charged with leaving the scene of a crash involving a fatality. Jail records show she was booked into the Hernando County Jail, later posting bond and being released the following day. She is scheduled to appear in court on April 2.

According to an arrest report, Walden had been stopped at a red light at the intersection of Wiscan Road and California Street in Brooksville on the night of the crash. When the light turned green, she accelerated — and collided with Mull, who investigators say was lying in the roadway at the time.

What happened next is at the center of the case.

Authorities allege Mull became lodged beneath Walden’s vehicle and was dragged approximately 87 feet before coming free. Instead of stopping to investigate or call for help, investigators say Walden continued driving.

Several miles away, troopers later located her car parked outside a McDonald’s restaurant. The vehicle reportedly had significant front-end damage, including a missing bumper, and visible blood on the undercarriage.

According to the report, Walden told investigators during an interview at the restaurant that she realized she had struck “something,” but believed it might have been a deer. She allegedly admitted she did not stop to check the roadway. Instead, she drove to a nearby 7-Eleven convenience store, placed the detached bumper into her vehicle, and then headed to work.

Investigators say she never contacted law enforcement to report the collision.

The case remained open for months as authorities worked to connect evidence from the crash scene to Walden’s vehicle. A key development came through forensic testing. According to the arrest report, DNA recovered from blood found on the car’s undercarriage was compared to Mull’s profile. The results reportedly showed the sample was more than 700 billion times more likely to have come from Mull than from anyone else.

That match, investigators say, solidified the charge.

An attorney representing Walden did not immediately respond to requests for comment, and court records do not yet reflect a formal plea. The case is expected to move forward at her April hearing.

The arrest has drawn attention not only for the severity of the allegations, but for the timeline: nearly a year passed between the fatal crash and the filing of charges. Now, prosecutors will have to prove that Walden knowingly left the scene of a deadly collision — while the defense may focus on whether she understood what had happened in the moments after impact.

For Jacob Mull’s family, the court date marks the next chapter in a case that began with a green light — and ended in tragedy.