St. Paul police officer who crashed into building had BAC two times over the legal limit, charges say
ST. PAUL, Minn. — A 30-year-old off-duty St. Paul police officer had a blood alcohol level more than two times the legal limit when he crashed into a vacant building in August, charges say.
Bryan James McKinnon is facing two charges of third-degree DWI, according to the criminal complaint filed in Hennepin County.
Charging documents say police were called to a car crash at Third Street and Maple Street in St. Paul just after midnight on Aug. 1. The caller reported the car had crashed into a building.
Upon arrival, officers noticed the vehicle had caught fire. They attempted to use fire extinguishers to put out the fire, but it spread, police say. The structural integrity of the building was in question, so the officers backed out of the building and the St. Paul Fire Department responded to the fire.
One of the responding officers recognized the vehicle involved in the crash and realized it belonged to their coworker, McKinnon.
McKinnon allegedly flagged down the officer and appeared to be in "shock and very distraught," charges say.
St. Paul police contacted the Minnesota State Patrol to take over the investigation due to the potential conflict of interest.
During the initial investigation, a state trooper interviewing McKinnon about the crash noted a slight slur when he spoke, that his eyes were glassy and bloodshot and he had a "moderate smell of a consumed alcoholic beverage," according to the criminal complaint. McKinnon told the officer he had lost control of his vehicle and did not know how fast he had been going at the time of the crash.
When asked if he had been drinking before driving, McKinnon allegedly told the trooper he had two beers.
The trooper then administered standard field sobriety tests on McKinnon, which he failed. Court documents say McKinnon refused to submit a portable breath test.
The trooper then arrested McKinnon and transported him to Regions Hospital for a blood draw after being granted a search warrant.
Charges say the blood samples revealed McKinon had an ethyl alcohol concentration of .178.
The Minneapolis City Attorney's Office will be prosecuting the case due to the potential for a conflict of interest.
McKinnon's arrangement is scheduled for Dec. 3.