Olivia Flores' parents continue to seek justice for their daughter one year after fatal crash

Yahoo

10-05-2025

May 10—ROCHESTER — Olivia Flores has been gone for nearly a year, but she still takes control of the music playing in her parents' car.
Carlos and Stephanie Flores, the parents of the 18-year-old who died in a car crash last May , say their daughter is still "on aux," occasionally playing songs from Harry Styles' discography or show tunes from musicals including "Wicked" or "The Greatest Showman."
Olivia Flores died from injuries sustained in a car crash on May 18, 2024. She was 20 days away from her high school graduation.
Carlos Flores said their daughter continues to do her "cosmic part" to remind her friends and family that she's still with them — through the grieving process to dealing with legal matters.
"It's Olivia making it easier for us because she would want justice," Carlos Flores said, "and she would want this to never happen to another person who was just going to Red Lobster for her friend's birthday."
The crash occurred around 5:45 p.m. on Saturday, May 18, 2024, at the intersection of Memorial Parkway and 12th Street Southwest, near Apache Mall. Flores sat in the back seat of her friend's Ford Focus when the car was struck by a Minnesota State Patrol squad car, driven by former trooper Shane Roper.
Roper, 33, is facing charges in Olmsted County District Court, including one count of second-degree manslaughter, one count of criminal vehicular homicide and three counts of criminal vehicular operation, all felonies. He is also facing two gross misdemeanor counts of criminal vehicular operation, one count of gross misdemeanor reckless driving and one count of misdemeanor careless driving.
"It's not like this was some freak thing," Carlos said. "It could have been prevented."
The fatal crash was not the first instance where Roper violated Minnesota State Patrol's policies.
Disciplinary records filed against Roper beginning in 2021 revealed four prior on-duty crashes. One occurred when he failed to yield to a motorist at a stop sign. Other crashes occurred when he struck a state unit car, hit a deer and ran into a cable median barrier. Minnesota State Patrol declined to comment on the matter due to ongoing civil and criminal proceedings.
"We're always taught to hold those in public service to a higher standard," Carlos said. "So why aren't they being held to a higher standard?"
In December 2024, five months after Roper was criminally charged, Stephanie and Carlos filed a federal lawsuit against him, claiming that the former trooper violated Flores' constitutional rights and wrongfully caused her death. The civil case is stayed, or paused, until the criminal case concludes.
Stephanie and Carlos often talk about advocating for the creation of a law to ensure law enforcement officers with similar driving histories to Roper's are stopped before they are involved in a fatal crash.
Law enforcement officers command respect and honor, Carlos said. They taught their kids that when there's trouble, officers will protect them.
Yet, Carlos said, Roper made the choice to risk speeding through the intersection without his lights or sirens activated.
"There has to be something put into place so that other people don't go through this," Stephanie said. "We will do whatever we can do to make sure no other parent has to go through this."
Whether they need to speak in front of the Minnesota Legislature or find new ways to continue sharing their daughter's story, the two are ready to advocate for what they coined "Liv's Law."
"Liv fought for justice for people," Carlos said. "She hated injustice. She'd be the loudest person if this happened to someone. She'd be marching, she'd be holding rallies. ... She was fearless and fierce and loud and she knew how to lead people."
Justice for their daughter would look like "time behind bars for the person who did it," Stephanie said, but it would also look like protecting other people.
"There's no reason why there should not have been a more permanent end to his career at some point," she said. "Somebody did not have to die for this."
As intermission for their friend's dance recital concluded on May 18, 2024, Carlos and Stephanie Flores were heading back into the auditorium at Owatonna High School when their phones started buzzing.
Carlos saw notifications from Life360, an app that records driving behaviors and can alert designated emergency contacts of possible crashes.
"I tried calling her and calling her and calling her," he said.
But their daughter never answered the calls or texts.
Stephanie and Carlos left the recital and headed to Rochester. One of Olivia's friends told them that their daughter was unconscious. Olivia died in the hospital on May 19, 2024, as a result of her injuries.
"We're just stuck in a cycle — it's a new normal. It's an upside down, unbelievable reality," Stephanie said. "Nothing feels real still."
Stephanie said when she reads court documents and news articles, she reads it as though it's about someone else.
Carlos said there are days when he's working at Kohl's, sees something his daughter would wear and goes to text her.
"I still forget," he said.
However, they said the "overwhelming" support from the Owatonna and Rochester communities has provided them with a sense of comfort in knowing they are not alone.
"Thank you is not enough, and I have no other words for it," Stephanie said. "Everything that people have given us in any way, shape or form, there aren't enough words for it."
Over the last year, Olivia has traveled everywhere — from Texas to Japan to the Steele County Fair. Carlos and Stephanie Flores have encouraged friends and family who are traveling to pull up a photo of Olivia on their phones and take a photo of her with them on their travels.
Olivia had planned after graduating from Owatonna High School on taking a gap year to work and save money for traveling. Although she was not able to travel in person, her parents set up a public Facebook group called "Look Where Liv Is" so anyone who travels can take a picture with her and post in the group.
Photos of Olivia have traveled to more than 90 places around the world.
Contributing to the Facebook group is just one way the community has kept Olivia's spirit alive, her parents said.
Days after the crash, T-shirts that said "Liv Strong" were made. The Owatonna baseball team placed heart decals with her name inside on their helmets. Her cheerleading uniform was retired. Some have gotten tattoos in her memory.
"The entire town has wrapped us in this bubble," Carlos said. "The community and the support, it's been overwhelming in the best possible way."
Knowing the impact Olivia had on the community and seeing how loved she is, her parents said, remind them to be present and to "Live like Liv."