Trooper who hit Owatonna teen's car was previously reprimanded for reckless driving, state patrol docs say
ROCHESTER, Minn. — The Minnesota State Patrol trooper who was charged with manslaughter in a high-speed crash that killed an Owatonna High School cheerleader in May had a record of reckless driving while on duty, according to his personnel file.
The file, which the state patrol released on Thursday, contains four separate reprimands for incidents in which Shane Roper hit another state patrol unit, a civilian's vehicle, a deer and a median. Two of the reprimands resulted in suspensions. The state patrol also noted that he has one open complaint with internal affairs.
In February of 2019, Roper crashed into another state unit while responding to a call, resulting in "extensive" damage to both units and injury to the other driver, documents state.
Roper in a second incident was patrolling around Rochester in May of 2021 when he was involved in a crash with another driver. His squad car's emergency lights were not on at the time, and he was not in active pursuit or responding to a call for service, the file says.
There were stop signs posted on the roadway, but he entered the intersection and failed to yield the right of way to a left-turning motorist when he struck the back of their vehicle, documents state. He was suspended for one day.
In December of 2021, Roper struck a deer while traveling 77 mph in a 55 mph zone, the documents say. He was responding to a Dodge County Sheriff's Office request, but he did so without notifying his own department, and did not use his emergency lights, the file says. The road was covered in snow and ice at the time, the documents note.
Roper was suspended for a day without pay for an incident in April of 2023 in which he "lost control of his patrol car" while pursuing a speeding vehicle, according to documents. He tried to exit the highway by entering a clover leaf-like ramp and struck a cable median barrier. During the pursuit, he was going at least 90 mph in a 60 mph zone, and he did not have his emergency lights activated, the file says.
Rochester crash
Roper was charged on Tuesday in connection to the crash that killed 18-year-old Olivia Flores and injured five others on May 18 in Rochester.
He was driving with "excessive speed" and without his lights on when he hit the car that Flores was in, which was trying to make its way through an intersection near the Apache Mall, charges state. Documents say he was going 83 mph 1.4 seconds before he hit the car. The collision then caused the two cars to hit a third vehicle.
In a statement weeks after the crash, Roper said he was trying to "close the gap" between his squad car and a vehicle he suspected of a traffic violation. He said he was not in active pursuit, was not paying attention to his speed, and thought his lights were still activated.
The charges say that just hours before the fatal collision, he was driving over 99 mph on "numerous occasions" while trying to initiate traffic stops, at one point traveling 135 mph in a 55 mph area.
He was charged with second-degree manslaughter, one count of criminal vehicular homicide, five counts of criminal vehicular operation, reckless driving and careless driving.
After the charges were released, attorneys for Flores' family said that "It is heartbreaking and unacceptable to the Flores family that the State of Minnesota allowed Trooper Roper to be on the road in a Minnesota State Patrol squad car after knowing that he posed a clear danger to others."
State Trooper Shane Roper personnel File by WCCO - CBS Minnesota on Scribd