Charges: Anthony Goose Had Revoked License, Was Drunk When He Ran Over 1-Year-Old Niece With SUV, Killing Her

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- A 28-year-old Walker man is accused of fleeing the scene after drunkenly backing over his 1-year-old niece with his SUV and killing her, according to charges filed in Cass County.

Anthony Goose faces two felony counts of criminal vehicular homicide, one for operating a vehicle with negligence under the influence of alcohol and another for leaving the scene after the incident. Goose also faces a misdemeanor charge of driving after a revocation of his driver's license.

According to the criminal complaint, Goose is the brother of the victim's mother. On May 2, he was working on his SUV's brakes at the victim's family's residence in Shingobee Township in rural Walker. Around 5 p.m., the family was getting ready to go to the store and Goose left the residence.

The stepfather of the victim then heard screaming from other children and came outside to check on them. That's when he found the 1-year-old victim lying face down in the driveway with a large amount of blood.

Deputies responded, began performing CPR on the victim and later loaded her into an ambulance. Despite life-saving efforts, the victim was pronounced dead.

Deputies at the scene learned the suspect vehicle was a white Chevy Tahoe with Leech Lake Tribal Plates that read "LOVELY." The vehicle was soon spotted by a deputy, who followed it to a duplex. There, deputies found the vehicle empty, but Goose then emerged from the duplex.

"The defendant had his hands in his pockets while walking and staring at (the deputy)," the complaint said. "The Deputy drew his pistol and gave him loud verbal commands to keep his hands up and walk to the Deputy."

Goose was then arrested.

Witnesses at the scene say Goose backed his SUV out of the driveway, ran over the child and then struck debris at the end of the driveway. A witness said it appeared Goose realized what he did before driving off at a high rate of speed.

Goose, suspected of being impaired by alcohol, was given a preliminary breath test, which gave a result of .123 BAC. Goose allegedly confirmed that he had been drinking peppermint Schnapps before arriving at his sister's house.

Surveillance footage from a neighbor's house captured the incident, showing Goose backing over the child, who was in the yard, as he was backing out of the driveway. He also backed into a pile of garbage, knocking items into the ditch and driveway.

Goose's license was revoked in December for a driving while impaired incident.

If convicted, Goose could face up to 10 years in prison per criminal vehicular homicide charge. He is still in custody and is expected to make his first court appearance Tuesday.