ST. LOUIS PARK, Minn. (AP) — A man with a history of driving under the influence was charged with criminal vehicular homicide Tuesday days after he rammed his car through a Minnesota restaurant’s outdoor patio where a group of medical professionals were celebrating after work, killing two people and injuring nine.
Steven Frane Bailey, 56, faces two counts of criminal vehicular homicide for intoxication and negligence, and nine counts of criminal vehicular injury. The number of charges could rise if investigators identify more victims, Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty said at a news conference Tuesday.
A 30-year-old mother of three who worked as a server at the Park Tavern in St. Louis Park and a medical staffer at a nearby hospital who was beloved by his colleagues both died after Bailey said he hit the gas pedal instead of his brakes. Nine others were injured in the deadly crash, which left a Minneapolis suburb in shock that a pleasant evening dining outside could end in tragedy.
“Bailey could have simply decided to stay home or take a Lyft rather than driving while intoxicated,” Moriarty said. “This tragedy killed two people and injured several others, and it was entirely avoidable.”
Moriarty did not know whether Bailey had retained an attorney on Tuesday. Calls to him and a family member, as well as an attorney who represented him in a previous case, were not returned Tuesday.
Surveillance footage captured Bailey pulling into the Park Tavern parking lot, driving past an open parking spot and hitting a parked car when he tried to back into that spot, a criminal complaint said. He then pulled out and accelerated toward the patio, barreling through a metal fence into a crowded area where patrons, restaurant staff and several children were gathered, court records show.
His gray BMW came to an abrupt stop after he hit several rocks on the patio. The server who died, Kristina Folkerts, was pinned under the car until police officers lifted it off her. She died at the scene. Gabe Harvey, who was at the restaurant celebrating with several colleagues from Methodist Hospital, was hit and pronounced dead later at a different medical facility.
Tables, chairs, beer glasses and furniture were strewn about over an artificial grass turf mat at the chaotic scene.
When police officers approached Bailey’s vehicle they heard him talking on the phone, prosecutors said. They reported hearing him say, “I hit the gas instead of the brake and went right through a thing” and “I’m probably going to jail.”
A preliminary breath sample showed a blood alcohol of .325%, which is four times the legal limit, Moriarty said.
Court records show Bailey was convicted of driving while intoxicated twice before, once in 2014 and again in 2015.
Four Methodist Hospital nurses who were with Harvey on Sunday were injured. Two are hospitalized in serious condition, two sustained less serious injuries and another has been released, the facility said in a statement.
The Park Tavern restaurant and nearby Methodist Hospital have supported each other for years as pillars of a Minneapolis suburb. The restaurant sent meals to the hospital during the COVID-19 pandemic as medical workers were overwhelmed. And those same workers would frequent the restaurant after shifts.
Harvey and the group of nurses went to the Park Tavern that night to celebrate with one of their colleagues, who was leaving her role for a new position. Harvey worked as a Health Unit Coordinator at Methodist, and was remembered by colleagues as a dedicated worker and an empathetic person.
Christopher Wendt, a nurse at the hospital, said he spoke to Harvey just hours before his death. Wendt’s mother is paralyzed and currently a patient at the hospital. She was having trouble with the call light that alerts medical staff when she needs assistance. Harvey came into Wendt’s mother’s room with a new call light. That act of service was their last interaction.
“He was such an amazing individual,” Wendt said. “He could not only put a smile on people’s faces, but he always went above and beyond.”
The Park Tavern is a “family-friendly destination” with bowling, arcade games, a restaurant and a bar, according to its website. In a written statement published online, the restaurant said it would partially reopen Wednesday in a special event.
Park Tavern owner Phil Weber told KARE-TV that Kristina Folkerts had a longstanding connection to the restaurant. Before Folkerts’ mother died, she was also a server at the restaurant. She passed when Folkerts was 14, and restaurant employees came to the teenager’s aid and would occasionally babysit her. Folkerts is survived by three young daughters.
Jacque Smith, a spokesperson for St. Louis Park, said that the city would recover.
“We extend our condolences to the family and friends of those who were killed and injured, and to the many people who witnessed this traumatic event,” Smith said in a statement. “We know the St. Louis Park community will support one another in the aftermath of this tragedy.”
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