Apple Valley Man Pleads Guilty To Drunk Driving In Fatal Crash

An Apple Valley man pleaded guilty to driving while drunk and smashing into another car and killing the driver just south of downtown Minneapolis, Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman announced Friday. Israel Delos Santos, 30, pleaded guilty Friday afternoon to one count of criminal vehicular homicide-driving with alcohol concentration above .08 and is expected to receive a sentence of 10 years in prison.

Two other counts of criminal vehicular homicide (grossly negligent driving and fleeing the scene) will be dropped at the sentencing when the judge accepts the plea, according to a news release.

Delos Santos admitted in court that on June 1 he had been drinking and acknowledged that the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension’s lab tests showed he had a blood alcohol level of .21, close to three times the legal limit.

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His lawyer said that in the plea petition, Delos Santos said he was so drunk that he doesn’t remember much of what happened. Delos Santos said that he didn’t remember when Assistant Hennepin County Attorney Mike Radmer asked him if he was traveling 70 miles per hour on Park Avenue.

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According to the criminal complaint, the airbag control module in the Chevrolet Trailblazer Delos Santos was driving showed he was traveling 71 miles per hour on the city street five seconds before he ran a red light and smashed into the Honda Fit at the intersection with 15th Street East, killing 47-year-old Krista Sandstrom. Delos Santos ran from the scene but police found him a short time later, according to authorities.

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