2 Charged In Fatal Burnsville Easter Sunday Crash

BURNSVILLE, MN — Two people have been charged in connection with the April 4 crash on County Road 42 in Burnsville that killed a young couple—Tayler Garza, 22, of Woodbury, and Dalton Ford, 22, of Burnsville, according to a news release from the Office of Dakota County Attorney Kathryn Keena.

Camille Dennis-Bond, 19, of Burnsville, was charged with two counts of third degree murder, two counts of criminal vehicular homicide and one count of criminal vehicular operation resulting in great bodily harm, the news release said.

Dennis-Bond is being held in Dakota County Jail with bail set to $300,000 without conditions or $75,000 with conditions by Dakota County District Court Judge Kathryn Messerich, according to the news release. She made her first court appearance Friday and is scheduled to make her second appearance Nov. 24 in Hastings, the news release said.

A juvenile was also involved in the crash, officials said.

Keena said that a delinquency petition and a petition for adult certification has also been filed against the juvenile who was 17 at the time of the crash, so he may receive the same charges.

On the morning of April 4, Dennis-Bond and her brother, the juvenile, were drag-racing on County Road 42 between Burnsville Parkway and Newton Avenue, officials said.

As the two car approached Newton Avenue, a Honda-CRV driven by Ford with Garza in the passenger seat began to cross County Road 42 onto Newton Avenue, according to police. As the Honda began crossing, it was T-boned by the car driven by the juvenile and split in half, officials said.

Both Ford and Garza died at the scene, according to police.

A passenger in the juvenile's car was brought to the hospital with serious injuries, officials said. The juvenile was also brought to the hospital, according to police.

Several witnesses told police that Dennis-Bond and the juvenile were driving "incredibly fast," officials said. One witness told officers that he believed they were either racing or it was a road rage incident and that he didn't think there was any way they could have stopped for anyone in their way, according to officials.

A crash reconstruction by Minnesota State Patrol showed that seconds before the crash, the juvenile was driving 114 mph in a 50 mph area, according to officials. State Patrol said that the primary contributing factor in the crash was the excessive speeding.

"My deepest sympathy is extended to the family and friends of Tayler Garza and Dalton Ford
for their great loss," Keena said. "This case serves as a somber reminder of the danger of driving at excessively high speeds. As of October 24, 2021, there have been 402 traffic-related deaths on Minnesota roadways, which represents a 25% increase over last year at this time. Speed is the largest contributing factor in these fatal traffic crashes. Of the 402 traffic-related deaths, 130 of those have been speed related deaths which is a 33% increase from this time last year and a 106% increase from this time in 2019."