Suspect in fatal Park Tavern crash to attend rehab as part of conditional release, court documents show

Community mourns lives lost in Park Tavern crash

ST. LOUIS PARK, Minn. — A man accused of drunkenly driving into a restaurant patio in St. Louis Park and killing two people will soon be released from jail, court documents reveal.

Steven Bailey, 56, was charged last month with two counts each of third-degree murder and criminal vehicular homicide and nine counts of criminal vehicular operation for the Sept. 9 incident.

A conditional release order filed in Hennepin County shows Bailey posted bail or bond — it is unclear which — of $500,000 with conditions.

According to the order, Bailey will remain in custody until Oct. 14 when he will be admitted into a rehabilitation center.

The conditions of the order require Bailey to stay away from Park Tavern and the victims of the incident, restrict him from driving and prohibit him from consuming alcohol. He will be subject to random testing to monitor his alcohol intake.

Charges say Bailey's BAC was .325 — more than four times the legal limit — when he drove into the Park Tavern patio, killing Kristina Folkerts, a 30-year-old employee of the restaurant, and Methodist Hospital employee Gabe Harvey. Nine other people were injured.

Kristina Folkerts and Gabe Harvey GoFundMe

Bailey had been attempting to back into an open parking spot but struck a parked car, according to the criminal complaint. He then drove through the parking lot towards the patio, where he hit an oncoming SUV. He then accelerated up to 30-45 mph and rammed through a metal fence surrounding the patio, striking several people. Prosecutors say he continued through the whole length of the patio without breaking and did not slow down until his car hit several boulders.

When officers arrived, they heard Bailey talking on the phone. 

"I'm f*****," Bailey said, according to charges. "I hit the gas instead of the brake and went right through a thing." 

Bailey has five previous DWI convictions on his record: One in 1985, two in the 1990s and two others in 2013 and 2014, respectively.

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