Charges: Driver Drunk In Inver Grove Heights Fatal Crash
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- A 21-year-old Inver Grove Heights man is accused of driving drunk in a crash that killed a woman last Saturday, according to charges filed Tuesday by the Dakota County Attorney's Office.
Nicholas Anthony Indehar was charged with two felony counts of criminal vehicular homicide in connection with the incident that killed 42-year-old Kim Caswell.
According to a criminal complaint, officers responded at about 3:03 p.m. Saturday to an injury crash involving multiple vehicles and a utility pole at the intersection of 70th Street and Dawn Avenue in Inver Grove Heights.
When officers arrived, two vehicles were on the northwest sidewalk of the intersection. A Cadillac passenger facing eastbound on 70th Street with heavy front-end damage had collided with Caswell's Honda minivan, which was facing westbound on 70th Street.
The force of the crash pushed the passenger side of the minivan into a utility pole and cracked the pole in half. The pole ended up on top of the van.
The complaint states a retired officer responded to the scene after hearing the crash from her residence. Caswell was later pronounced dead at the scene by first responders. The other driver, identified as Indehar, was found at the scene walking around near the vehicles. He had blood on his forehead and had a strong odor of alcohol.
Caswell's brother-in-law, Kevin, says she was a pediatric cancer care nurse for 14 years. He says she loved kids, and cherished her time with her three children.
The complaint states Indehar told paramedics at the scene he didn't want medical attention and said he doesn't drink and drive so even if he submitted to a breath test, he wouldn't be over the legal limit.
According to the complaint, several witnesses at the scene told authorities they saw Indehar's vehicle going extremely fast eastbound on 70th Street approaching Dawn Avenue. After the crash, Indehar told one of the witnesses who was trying to help him, "I wasn't driving." The witness asked him if there was another person in the car, but he didn't answer.
Another witness told authorities they watched Indehar's vehicle go through a stop sign at a high rate of speed, hit the minivan and dragged the vehicle until it hit a utility pole, the complaint states. The witness said they heard Indehar say, "son of a b***h" as he got out of the vehicle.
The complaint states another witness told authorities Indehar was going about 50 miles per hour at the time of the crash, and the speed limit in that area is 30.
While doing inventory on the Cadillac at the crash scene, officers located an open bottle of rum behind the driver's seat on the floor that was nearly empty, the complaint states. Indehar was arrested at the scene for DWI and told authorities that since he was being arrested, he wanted to go to the hospital and take as much time as he could before taking a test.
According to the complaint, he took a test more than two hours after the crash that indicated alcohol was present in his system.
If convicted, Indehar faces up to 20 years in prison and $40,000 in fines.
A GoFundMe account has been set up to help Caswell's family. Click here for more information.
