Minneapolis woman charged in fatal crash, fleeing scene
The scene of the crash at the intersection of 41st Street East and Hiawatha Avenue. (FOX 9)
MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - A Minneapolis woman has been charged after she crashed her car, causing it to burst into flames - killing one of her passengers and seriously injuring another.
Mackenzie Rose Lene, 19, is charged with one count of criminal vehicular homicide for leaving the scene of the crash, and one count of criminal vehicular operation for causing great bodily harm and leaving the scene of a crash.
According to the charges, around 12:30 a.m. on March 31, Minneapolis Police Officers responded to a single car crash on Hiawatha Avenue near 41st Street in Minneapolis. At the scene, the car appeared to have hit a tree and a man was lying in the road, who later died.
READ MORE: 1 killed, 1 seriously hurt after vehicle catches fire after Minneapolis wreck
Another man was standing near the car who suffered serious burns, three broken ribs and a concussion due to the crash, court documents said.
Police learned the car involved in the crash was registered to Lene, the complaint said. Officers went to Lene’s home and got video from the area.
According to court records, the video showed a man and a woman walking in an alley, and the woman can allegedly be heard saying "I’m going home as soon as possible, I have to talk to my dad… ruined my life. You don’t understand…"
The man allegedly responds, "you’re going to be okay when you get home."
The woman then says, "At home, with no car…" which the man responds saying, "you’re going to be okay, I’ll help you find your car in the morning."
The woman responds by yelling, "it’s burnt the f--- up!"
Police spoke to witnesses from an apartment near the crash, the charges said. The witnesses said they were arriving home when they heard an explosion, and they rushed towards the street. They told police they saw a woman and a man outside the car, and they believed the woman had been driving.
One of the witnesses said that he and the man outside the car pulled a man from the back seat and laid him on the ground. The other witness said once emergency responders started showing up on the scene, the man and the woman who were outside the car climbed over a wall and left the scene, court documents allege.
According to the complaint, a third witness told officers the woman at the scene was about 20-years-old, and she was allegedly screaming, "it’s my car, it’s my car, I’m sorry, I’m sorry."
Police spoke to the victim who was injured in the crash at the hospital several days later, court documents said. He told police he had been at a birthday party with the victim who died at the scene, when Lene and the other man that fled the scene of the crash met up with them.
The injured victim said they had been in the deceased victim’s car before the party, passing around a bottle of alcohol, the charges said.
After the party, he said the deceased victim didn’t want to drive as he had been drinking, so the two got into Lene’s car. He also told officers that Lene was driving "fast and aggressively."
Court documents say that the injured victim is still hospitalized, and hospital staff told police he will need skin grafts and multiple surgeries because of his injuries he sustained in the crash.
Police also talked to the man who fled the scene of the crash. He said he was in the front passenger seat; Lene was allegedly driving, and the two victims were in the backseat. He also said he and Lene fled the scene and went to her house, court documents allege.
Lene had her first court appearance on Friday, and her next court appearance is May 30.