John Jefferson
Inset: Steven Bailey (Hennepin County Jail). Background: Park Tavern after crash that killed two people (KSTP/YouTube).
Prosecutors in Minnesota added murder charges to a man accused of killing two people and injuring 9 others when he allegedly drove his BMW X5 through the patio of a crowded restaurant while driving drunk.
Steven Frane Bailey, 56, was already facing vehicular homicide and other drunk driving-related charges for the Sept. 1 crash at Park Tavern in St. Louis Park, which is in the Minneapolis area. But after reviewing surveillance video prosecutors added two counts of third-degree murder for “perpetrating” a dangerous act under a “depraved mind,” a probable cause arrest affidavit said.
The video showed the BMW in the parking lot where he hit a parked vehicle, cops wrote. In an “attempted to flee the scene” Bailey allegedly sped through the parking lot, striking an SUV. He “continued to accelerate straight toward the patio.”
“After hitting the Black SUV, defendant accelerates straight past a two-lane drive in the parking lot and 11 parking spaces before plowing his vehicle through a metal fence and into the patio seating area,” detectives wrote.
Bailey allegedly hit “multiple” people and occupied tables, not braking for the full length of the patio. He didn’t slow down until coming to an “abrupt” stop after hitting two boulders at the base of a steep incline, cops said.
Officers arrived on scene to find several broken tables and chairs, debris and numerous victims, including a woman later identified as 30-year-old Kristina Marie Folkerts who was trapped under the car. Since the BMW was inoperable, cops lifted the car to get her out but paramedics pronounced her dead. First responders rushed another victim, Gabriel Quinn Harvey, 30, to the hospital where doctors pronounced him dead.
According to the affidavit, Bailey stumbled out of the car and fell down. Officers heard him allegedly say “I’m f—-” and “I’m probably going to jail.” He also reportedly claimed he meant to hit the brake but hit the gas instead. Bailey’s speech was slurred and eyes watery, cops noted. When officers told him they were going to conduct field sobriety tests, he allegedly said “you don’t need to do fields, I know what I did.”
He had a .325 blood alcohol content level — over four times the legal limit of 0.08, the affidavit said. Cops took him to the Hennepin County Jail and informed him he’d be facing vehicular manslaughter charges. Bailey allegedly responded “you’ve got to be kidding me” and “my life’s pretty much f—– now, isn’t it?”
Those who survived suffered major injuries such as broken legs, pelvis and ribs and dislocated knees while others had minor cuts and bruises.
Left: Kristina Folkerts. Right: Gabe Harvey (GoFundMe).
Prosecutors on Monday also filed a notice of intent to seek an “upward sentencing departure” because of Bailey’s five prior drunk driving convictions, his high BAC and the fact that children were at the restaurant at the time of the incident, among other reasons.
There’s been an outpouring of support from the community since the incident. A GoFundMe started for Folkerts has raised over $200,000. The mother of three was a Tavern employee. Folkerts loved her three girls immensely, her obituary said.
“She was ambitious, a hard worker who greatly loved her Park Tavern family and was a photographer. She also loved music, attending concerts and her Starbucks. Kristina was very passionate about her photography, knew what she wanted and was a visionary in a lot of subjects. She was free spirited and found the beauty in everyone,” the obituary said.
Harvey worked in the ICU at Methodist Hospital as a health unit coordinator and was out enjoying a night with co-workers when the incident happened, a GoFundMe said. He was set to graduate nursing school in December.
“Gabe and his partner, Denzel, recently became new homeowners and were in the process of making the house their home. There was not a soul that Gabe met that he did not leave an impression on, he always had a smile and a kind word for everyone,” the fundraiser said. “His ability to include everyone and make them feel seen and appreciated is unmatched.”
Bailey is at the Hennepin County Jail on a $500,000 bond. He has a court date scheduled for Oct. 1.
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