Minnesota To Force More Drivers To Prove They’re Sober

ST. PAUL, MN — More Minnesota motorists with a history of drunk driving could soon be required to prove they’re sober before starting their cars.

A bipartisan bill expanding the state’s ignition interlock program has passed both chambers of the Legislature and is now headed to Gov. Tim Walz, who is expected to sign it.

Under the bill, more drivers would be required to install and use ignition interlock devices, the in-car breathalyzers that prevent a vehicle from starting unless the driver passes a breath test.

Specifically, the legislation will:

• Require a two-year ignition interlock period for anyone with one prior DWI in the past 20 years
• Increase ignition lock durations up to 15 years or even for life for the most severe repeat offenses and for cases involving serious injury or death
• Extend the "lookback period" for prior DWIs from 10 years to 20 years when determining penalties
• Impose harsher penalties, including gross misdemeanor charges, for violating interlock rules, such as driving a car without a device.

Bill Was Inspired By Tragedy

The bill was prompted by the deadly Sept. 1 crash at Park Tavern in St. Louis Park, where an intoxicated driver with a long history of DWIs plowed into a crowded restaurant patio, killing two people and injuring several others

Rep. Larry Kraft, who represents St. Louis Park, authored the legislation. “This is a great bill,” he said on the House floor last week. “It will save lives.”

The driver in the Park Tavern crash, Steven Frane Bailey, 56, pleaded guilty earlier in May to multiple felony charges, including two counts of third-degree murder for "perpetrating an eminently dangerous act and evincing a depraved mind."

His blood alcohol level was measured at 0.325, more than four times the legal limit in Minnesota.

Court records show Bailey has five prior DWI convictions. Though his license had been canceled in the past, it was valid at the time of the crash.

Under the terms of his plea deal, Bailey will be sentenced to at least 25 years in prison, with a maximum possible sentence of 30 years. Sentencing is scheduled for July 28.

"Mr. Bailey’s choices that day scarred many lives and affected an entire community," said Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty in a statement. "This was an entirely avoidable tragedy. There are many options to get where you need to go safely, there is no excuse for drinking and driving."

Bailey was initially charged with two counts of criminal vehicular homicide and nine counts of criminal vehicular operation. After prosecutors reviewed new surveillance footage and other evidence, they amended the charges to include third-degree murder and 12 counts of criminal vehicular operation.

The Sept. 1, 2024, Park Tavern crash killed Kristina Folkerts, 30, of St. Louis Park. She was "a loving mother of 3 young girls and friend to many in the community," her GoFundMe page states.

The second person killed in the crash was identified as Gabe Harvey, also 30, of Rosemount. He was a Health Unit Coordinator at the nearby Methodist Hospital. His coworkers, four nurses from the Methodist ICU, were also injured.

"Our friend and coworker Gabe Harvey was the victim of a horrific tragedy," a separate GoFundMe page states. "He was out celebrating a beloved coworker’s last shift in the Methodist Hospital ICU, where Gabe worked as a HUC (Health Unit Coordinator) while he was in nursing school."

On Sept. 1, police were dispatched to Park Tavern on a report of a vehicle driving through the patio and striking several people.

At the scene, officers found a Gray BMW X5 up against large boulders at the base of a hill on the south side of the restaurant's patio.

The driver of the vehicle, identified as Bailey, was still inside.

Bailey had driven through the metal fence surrounding the Park Tavern patio and had struck several people, according to the criminal complaint.

Five victims were being treated at the scene. A sixth person, Kristina Folkerts, was found pinned under the BMW.

Police lifted the BMW off Folkerts. Despite life-saving efforts, she was pronounced dead at the scene.

Officers approached Bailey and heard him on the phone say, "I’m f___ed," the criminal complaint states. He also said: "I hit the gas instead of the brake and went right through a thing" and,"I’m probably going to jail," according to police.

Bailey appeared calm but was slow to respond; his speech was slurred, and his eyes were bloodshot and watery, the criminal complaint states.

As he exited the vehicle, Bailey was unsteady on his feet and fell to his knees, police said.

After being removed from the car, he told officers: "You don’t need to do fields. I know what I did," the criminal complaint states.

A preliminary breath sample found that Bailey's blood-alcohol level was .325, more than four times the legal limit of .08 in Minnesota, according to police.

After being medically evaluated at the Hennepin County Medical Center, Bailey was transported to the Hennepin County Jail.

When officers told Bailey he was being booked with criminal vehicular homicide, he responded: "you got to be kidding me," and "my life’s pretty much f___ed now, isn’t it?" according to police.

The criminal complaint provided the following summary of the victims identified in the crash:

• Victim K.F. was pronounced deceased on scene due to the nature and extent of her injuries.
• Victim G.H. was transported to HCMC where he was pronounced deceased.
• Victim T.D. sustained broken legs, a broken pelvis, broken ribs, and dislocated knees.
• Victim L.K. sustained head trauma and lost consciousness during transport to the hospital.
• Victim T.L. sustained head trauma, facial lacerations, and complete loss of memory
• Victim E.S. sustained serious road rash injuries, chest pain, bruising, and torn off skin.
• Victim A.R. sustained multiple bruises.
• Victim R.C. sustained a minor bruise to the back of her right knee.
• Victim D.K. sustained a minor bruise to the middle of his back.
• Victim S.M. sustained minor injuries from being hit by an object during the collision.
• Victim L.M. sustained minor injuries from being hit by an object during the collision.

Surveillance video from Park Tavern showed Bailey pull into the parking lot and drive past an open parking spot, police said.

He then attempted to back into the spot and struck a parked car. Bailey then pulled out and drove south through the parking lot towards the patio and struck an oncoming SUV, according to investigators.

Bailey then accelerated rapidly and "plowed" through the metal fence surrounding the patio and into the seating area, where he struck several individuals who were seated or walking within the patio area, the criminal complaint states.

Bailey continued to accelerate all the way through the patio area, reaching estimated speeds of up to 45 mph, police said. Bailey's vehicle is seen finally coming to an abrupt and violent halt when he hits several boulders at the base of a steep hill, police said.