Drunk Driver Kills His Toddler, Injures 4 Others In Minnesota Crash; Charged

A Minnesota man has been arrested for speeding and crashing an SUV, killing his toddler and injuring a woman and three other children. The driver was drunk when the incident took place.

Officers responded to a one-vehicle crash on I-94 under Dupont Avenue in Brooklyn Center at around 2:30 a.m. Sunday. The driver, identified as 25-year-old Hakeem O. Miller, of Brooklyn Center, was speeding an SUV while under the influence of alcohol when he veered off an overpass and crashed onto the interstate below. The incident killed Miller's 1-year-old child.

Miller was charged with two counts each of criminal vehicular homicide and child endangerment in Hennepin County District Court Tuesday, reported Star Tribune.

Responding officers found a woman and four children, aged 9, 5, 3 and 1, inside the vehicle driven by Miller. The woman, identified as Sharonda McMorris, was reportedly sitting in the passenger seat while the 1-year-old and 3-year-old kids were sitting on the lap of the 9-year-old at the time of the incident, KSTP said in a report.

McMorris suffered non-life-threatening injuries in the crash. Meanwhile, the three other children inside the vehicle suffered bruises, scrapes and cuts.

None of the children were in required safety restraints inside the car. Police also found a loaded handgun under the driver's seat, the charges filed Tuesday read.

Authorities at the scene said Miller's one eye had been watery and bloodshot. He also smelled of alcohol. Miller had reportedly lost his other eye in an unrelated incident in the past.

State Patrol administered a preliminary breath test, which revealed Miller's blood alcohol content was at 0.09%, above the legal limit for driving in Minnesota. It was also found that he had been driving even though his license was still suspended, the Department of Public Safety said as per Star Tribune.

After the crash, Miller reportedly helped the other passengers exit the vehicle and noticed one child was on top of the 1-year-old. According to the complaint, Miller was upset because he was the father of the unresponsive child.

The surviving children spoke to authorities after the incident. One of them told officers the SUV had been "going as fast as it would go." Another child demonstrated the vehicle's movement using an object.

"The movement that the child made with the object suggested that the wheels were coming up off the pavement as the vehicle swerved from side to side," the complaint read.

Miller remains in custody and his bail has been set at $200,000. He is due to appear in court Wednesday.

At the time of the crash, Miller had an active arrest warrant for charges related to possession of a firearm while under the influence of alcohol and reckless handling of a weapon.