Latest news with #DerrickThompson
CBS News
3 days ago
- General
- CBS News
State trooper returns to witness stand in trial of Derrick Thompson, accused in crash that killed 5
State trooper to take witness stand in Derrick Thompson trial, and more headlines State trooper to take witness stand in Derrick Thompson trial, and more headlines State trooper to take witness stand in Derrick Thompson trial, and more headlines A Minnesota state trooper will return to the witness stand on Friday to face cross examination from the defense in the trial of Derrick Thompson, the son of a former Minnesota lawmaker charged in a deadly 2023 crash in Minneapolis that killed five young women. Thompson faces five counts of third-degree murder and 10 counts of criminal vehicular homicide in connection to the crash on June 16, 2023. Five friends died in the collision: Salma Abdikadir, 20; Sabiriin Ali, 17; Sahra Gesaade, 20; Sagal Hersi, 19; and Siham Odhowa, 19. On Thursday, the prosecution and defense laid the groundwork for the evidence they say jurors will hear and see, with prosecutors alleging Thompson drew the attention of trooper Andres Guerra on Interstate 35W by driving erratically and at dangerous speeds. Guerra testified on Thursday that he watched the rented SUV Thompson was allegedly driving weave in and out of traffic and lanes. Derrick Thompson HCSO According to court documents, Thompson allegedly cut across several lanes of traffic, exited on East Lake Street, blew through a red light and smashed into the victims' vehicle. In opening statements on Thursday, prosecutors say Thompson omitted guilt with his actions that day, as evidence will show he ran from the scene immediately following the crash. "The cause of these deaths, and the pain and the suffering that followed, is present here in this courtroom today, and his name is Derrick Thompson, and he is sitting right there and he is the defendant in this case," said prosecutor Joseph Paquette. Thompson's defense team, however, says it wasn't him behind the wheel — it was Thompson's brother, who hasn't been arrested or charged in connection to the case. They say they have evidence to back up their claim. "When the dust settles and smoke clears, you'll see multiple doors to this vehicle open," said defense attorney Tyler Bliss. "You will see DNA of multiple people in this car who are seen renting the vehicle 35 minutes before this occurs." WCCO has a camera inside the courtroom and will break down the key moments. This story will be updated.
CBS News
3 days ago
- General
- CBS News
2 injured in Falcon Heights hit-and-run, police ask for help finding vehicle
State trooper to take witness stand in Derrick Thompson trial, and more headlines State trooper to take witness stand in Derrick Thompson trial, and more headlines State trooper to take witness stand in Derrick Thompson trial, and more headlines Police in St. Anthony, Minnesota are asking for the public's help in finding a vehicle they say was involved in a hit-and-run that injured two people on Wednesday. The hit-and-run happened shortly before 11 p.m. near the 1800 block of Snelling Avenue in Falcon Heights, St. Anthony police say. The two pedestrians suffered non-life-threatening but severe injuries. They were taken to the hospital. Police believe the car was a gray, silver or tan late-1900s or early-2000s Buick LeSabre. Investigators say it sustained damage to the front passenger side. The car was last seen on Fairview Avenue at Highway 36 near Rosedale Mall. Anyone with information about the car is asked to call St. Anthony Police at 612-782-3350.
CBS News
3 days ago
- General
- CBS News
Brooklyn Park police searching for missing woman, 20
State trooper to take witness stand in Derrick Thompson trial, and more headlines State trooper to take witness stand in Derrick Thompson trial, and more headlines State trooper to take witness stand in Derrick Thompson trial, and more headlines Police in Brooklyn Park, Minnesota, need the public's help to find 20-year-old Precious Urrutia, who went missing on Wednesday. Urrutia was last seen near the area of Queen's Garden North and 92nd Crescent, just south of Noble Sports Park. Precious Urrutia Brooklyn Park Police Police say Urritia is an Indigenous woman standing 5 feet 9 inches tall and weighing about 200 pounds. She has brown hair and brown eyes. She was last seen wearing a maroon and cream-colored varsity jacket and black leggings. Anyone with information on her whereabouts is asked to call police at 763-439-8222 or 911.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Opening statements in the Derrick Thompson murder trial
The Brief Derrick Thompson, 29, is charged with 15 counts of criminal vehicular homicide and 3rd degree murder. The prosecutor told jurors the evidence is clear that Thompson was driving a rented SUV at more than 90 miles an hour and slammed into a car at the intersection on Lake Street in Minneapolis, killing 5 young women. Thompson's defense attorney told jurors the evidence will show Thompson's brother may have been driving. MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - The opening statements were short and to the point. A Hennepin County prosecutor told jurors the evidence is clear that 29-year-old Derrick Thompson was the one behind the wheel. The defense attorney said the evidence will show it could have been someone else, namely Thompson's brother. What we know Thompson is charged with 15 counts of criminal vehicular homicide and third-degree murder. There are three counts for each of the five young women who were killed: Salma Abdikadir, Sahra Gesaade, Sagal Hersi, Siham Odhowa and Sabiriin Ali. During opening statements, jurors saw a video of the rented Cadillac Escalade slamming into the car the young women were in. The prosecutor told them they would see more during the course of the trial. "They never stood a chance," said Joseph Paquette, a Hennepin County Assistant Attorney. "The defendant T-boned the Honda Civic. What resulted isn't sufficiently described as a crash or a collision. It was an explosion." The video brought gasps and tears from the courtroom gallery, filled with family and friends of the five victims. The other side Thompson's defense attorney, Tyler Bliss, told jurors the state can't prove the case. In fact, he told them, the evidence would show someone else may have been driving. In a court filing earlier in the week, they named Thompson's brother as an "alternative perpetrator." "When the dust settles, the smoke clears, you'll see multiple doors to this vehicle open," Bliss said in his opening statement. "You will see the DNA of multiple people in this car who are seen renting the vehicle 35 minutes before this occurs." Dig deeper Thompson rented the SUV at the airport less than a half hour before the crash. His brother was there to drop him off, prosecutors say, but security cameras showed only Thompson inside when he drove off. Jurors will also hear from an eyewitness who will testify they saw Thompson get out of the SUV driver's seat and walk away, as well as another who recorded Thompson approaching him and asking for a ride. The first witness on the stand was an ex-girlfriend of Thompson, who said he told her he was driving. The second witness was the state trooper who clocked the SUV at 95 miles per hour and was trying to catch up to make a stop. He testified that at the crash site only one of the SUV's doors was open. It was the driver's door. His testimony continues Friday. The trial is expected to wrap up next week.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Derrick Thompson's trial begins in deaths of 5 women
He was not the driver. That's what Derrick Thompson's attorney subtly introduced to jurors Thursday as Thompson's murder trial got underway in the south Minneapolis crash that killed five young women nearly two years ago. Although defense attorney Tyler Bliss in his opening statements did not give the name of who he will argue was the driver, a court document pins the blame on Thompson's brother, Demarco John Thompson, in a one-page notice of defense Bliss filed in court Tuesday, listing him as an 'alternative perpetrator.' 'The question of tragedy is not what this trial is about,' Bliss told jurors. 'The question presented here in this court is whether or not the state can prove beyond a reasonable doubt that my client drove that vehicle, and if he had the specific mental state to commit murder, to commit homicide. And, ladies and gentlemen, they simply cannot meet that burden.' Prosecutors say that Derrick Thompson was driving 95 mph on Interstate 35W in a rented Cadillac Escalade SUV, passing a Minnesota State Trooper, exiting on Lake Street, and then running a red light at Second Avenue and crashing into the victims' Honda Civic still at a high rate of speed 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. 'These five young women, between the ages of 17 and 20, lost their lives due to the act of another that was shockingly reckless, incredibly selfish and unspeakably foolish,' Assistant Hennepin County Attorney Joseph Paquette told jurors. Thompson, the 29-year-old son of a former St. Paul state representative, was originally charged with 10 counts of criminal vehicular homicide for allegedly operating a motor vehicle in a grossly negligent manner and leaving the scene of an accident. In September, prosecutors added 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.' While hearing evidence in the case, Paquette told jurors, 'ask yourself, how dangerous were the defendant's actions? What was his mindset when he did the things that the evidence shows he did in this case? Did the defendant flee the scene of the crash, and did his actions demonstrate an indifference to the loss of human life that he caused?' In November, Thompson turned down a plea offer from the Hennepin County Attorney's Office that called for a prison term between 32½ and nearly 39 years for pleading guilty to five counts of criminal vehicular homicide. A month earlier, a federal jury found Thompson, of Brooklyn Park, guilty of federal drug and weapons charges connected to the crash after more than 2,000 fentanyl pills and a Glock 40 semiautomatic handgun were found inside the Cadillac after the crash. A sentencing date has not been set. Jury selection began Tuesday at the Hennepin County courthouse and wrapped up Thursday afternoon. Judge Carolina Lamas is presiding over the case, which has shaken Minnesota's Somali community and attracted a high level of public interest and national media coverage. Lamas is allowing one TV news camera to record the trial, with the video footage to be shared with other media outlets. She denied requests for a livestream. A still photographer is also permitted in the courtroom, which on Thursday overflowed with family and friends of the victims. A second courtroom was opened up to accommodate everyone. Paquette read the names and ages of the five victims at the start of the state's opening statement. He then played a short clip of the crash, which was caught on video surveillance. What followed in the courtroom was loud gasps from the gallery. One woman got up and left, returning a short while later with a box of tissues. 'They never stood a chance,' Paquette said. 'The defendant t-boned a Honda Civic. What resulted isn't sufficiently described as a crash or a collision. It was an explosion. The Honda Civic was damaged beyond all recognition. No one from that vehicle could have survived. And no one did.' Paquette told jurors they will hear from several witnesses who saw Thompson shortly after the crash. Homeowner Dorinda Pacheco saw him limping past her Second Avenue house, then cut through a neighbor's yard and go down the alley toward a McDonald's parking lot, Paquette said. Thompson soon asked Carolyn Stauffer if he could use her cellphone, and she let him do so. He made a call and asked the person on the other end of the phone to come and pick him up from a Taco Bell parking lot, according to Paquette. After Thompson was arrested near the fast-food restaurant, he denied involvement in the crash and said his injuries were 'old.' He then said he had fallen earlier in the night, the charges say. 'This was an immediate red flag to officers, because they could tell that this was obviously a new injury,' Paquette said. The five women had just gotten done preparing for their friend's wedding, which was scheduled for the next day. They went shopping. A few got henna tattoos. Meanwhile, Thompson was at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, where Paquette said he was dropped off by his brother and rented the black Escalade from Hertz. 'He's seen clearly on surveillance video driving away from the facility in the Escalade with no other occupants,' Paquette said. 'He then makes his way from the airport and eventually onto highway 35 headed north.' Minnesota State Trooper Andres Guerra saw Thompson speeding and, before he could catch up or turn on the squad's emergency lights or sirens, Thompson 'cut across all lanes of traffic' and exited the interstate, Paquette said. 'After the crash, as you saw, both vehicles were launched north of the intersection and rolled end over end,' he said. 'The defendant crawled out of the Escalade right in front of the home of a woman named Dorinda Pacheco.' On the ground near the totaled vehicles, officers found the Hertz rental agreement that listed Thompson as the driver and noted the SUV had been rented just under a half-hour before the crash, Paquette said. 'You're also going to hear evidence during this trial that the defendant's brother, Demarco, his DNA, was possibly found in one location of the vehicle,' Paquette said. 'But Demarco was never seen inside of the vehicle, and it is an open question whether he ever even entered the vehicle at all.' Bliss, Thompson's attorney, said Thursday, 'When the dust settles, the smoke clears, you'll see multiple doors to this vehicle opened. You will see the DNA of multiple people in this car who are seen renting the vehicle 35 minutes before this occurs.' The prosecution was dealt a setback last week when the state court of appeals affirmed Lamas' ruling that prosecutors cannot introduce evidence from Thompson's 2018 crash in Montecito, Calif., in which he fled from officers in a vehicle, struck a pedestrian and left the scene on foot. The victim was placed in an induced coma and she had to undergo six surgeries within eight days of the crash. Thompson pleaded guilty in Santa Barbara County District Court in 2020 to charges of 'evading an officer (and) causing injury, leaving the scene of an accident (that caused) injury/death.' He was released from prison about six months before the Lake Street crash. The state sought to introduce evidence from that case to prove Thompson knew that his actions in Minneapolis were 'eminently dangerous' to others and that he 'acted with a depraved mind' — the key elements of a third-degree murder charge. The appeals court said in its May 19 ruling that while the two car crashes both involved reckless driving and caused serious injury, 'this commonality is too general' in showing a pattern of behavior. Police looking for hit-and-run driver who injured 2 pedestrians in Falcon Heights Man fatally shot in St. Paul ID'd as 20-year-old Crypto crime spills over from behind the screen to real-life violence Pair sentenced in human smuggling case that left Indian family dead on Minnesota border Angry with electrical utility, Iron Range official cuts wire, knocking out power to 3 towns In its 19-page opinion, the appeals court ruled that Lamas did not abuse her discretion in excluding the evidence from the California crash, while also acknowledging the decision 'significantly reduced the likelihood of a successful prosecution of Thompson for charges of third-degree depraved-mind murder.' The state's first witness was Kanitra Walker, Thompson's former girlfriend, who testified that Thompson called her from the hospital, where was recovering from his injuries, and said 'he was going a little fast and everything just happened so fast.' She said he never made a statement about his brother or anyone else being with him at the time of the crash. The trial will resume Friday and is expected to last into late next week. Thompson's father, John Thompson, was a first-term lawmaker representing St. Paul's East Side when he was defeated in the DFL primary in August 2022 in the wake of a number of controversies, which included questions about his official residence following a July 2021 traffic stop in St. Paul.
