Derrick Thompson guilty of all charges in Minneapolis high-speed crash that killed 5 young women
Jurors on Friday found Derrick John Thompson guilty of all charges in his murder trial for the high-speed crash that killed five young women nearly two years ago.
The verdict was reached after about nine hours of deliberations over two days.
Thompson, the 29-year-old son of a former St. Paul state representative, stood before Judge Carolina Lamas as she read the guilty charges: five counts of third-degree murder and 10 counts of criminal vehicular homicide for operating a motor vehicle in a grossly negligent manner and leaving the scene of an accident.
Sentencing is set for July 24.
Prosecutors say Thompson was driving 95 mph on Interstate 35W in a rented Cadillac Escalade SUV when he passed a Minnesota State Trooper, exited on Lake Street at 116 mph, and then ran a red light at Second Avenue, crashing into the victims' Honda Civic just after 10 p.m. June 16, 2023.
Pronounced dead at the scene were Salma Mohamed Abdikadir, 20, of St. Louis Park; Sabiriin Mohamoud Ali, 17, of Bloomington; Sahra Liban Gesaade, 20, of Brooklyn Center; Sagal Burhaan Hersi, 19, of Minneapolis, and Siham Adan Odhowa, 19, of Minneapolis. They were returning from preparing for a friend's wedding, which was to be the next day.
In September, prosecutors added the five counts of third-degree murder, which is defined in state statute as 'perpetrating an act eminently dangerous to others and evincing a depraved mind, without regard for human life.'
'Members of the jury, not every murder is calculated or considered,' Assistant Hennepin County Attorney Paige Starkey said Thursday in the state's closing arguments. 'Not every murder is directed at a particular person or people?'
Tyler Bliss, Thompson's attorney, tried to cast doubt during the trial that Thompson was the driver, despite jurors seeing surveillance video of him renting the Escalade from Hertz at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport and then driving away. Bliss suggested his older brother, Damarco Thompson, was the driver that night, pointing to evidence that his hat and a set of car keys were found inside the crashed SUV.
In response, the state subpoenaed Damarco to take the stand. On Wednesday, he testified that he never drove the Escalade. He said they drove to MSP in a Dodge Challenger and that after Derrick rented the Escalade, they met near the airport. Derrick transferred some possessions from the Challenger to the Escalade, which he then drove away, Damarco said.
To make its case, prosecutors presented a lot of video from the night, including of the violent crash and his interaction with police officers.
Thompson was seen on video at Hertz renting the Escalade, then speeding past a state trooper parked under an I-35W overpass.
Video showed the trooper wasn't able to catch up or turn on the squad's emergency lights or sirens before Thompson cut across all four lanes of traffic and turned off the interstate at Lake Street. He drove down the exit ramp and into the intersection without stopping or slowing for the red light.
This is a breaking news story. Check back for more details.
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