Distracted Truckdriver Sentenced For 2023 Crash in SE Minnesota
Rochester, MN (KROC-AM News) - A truck driver from Florida was sentenced today in Olmsted County Court for causing a traffic crash in Byron last year that resulted in significant injuries.
According to the criminal complaint against 53-year-old Joseph Mitilien of Miami, he was driving a semi-truck at highway speeds east on Highway 14 on April 21, 2023 when the truck smashed into several stationary vehicles at the intersection of Highway 14 and 10th Avenue Northwest in Byron. The court document says videos recorded by Minnesota Department of Transportation cameras showed the traffic signals for the vehicles involved in the crash had just turned from red to green, but the drivers still had not begun moving through the intersection.
Court records indicate the occupants of a minivan and SUV involved in the crash were transported to St. Marys Hospital with serious injuries. The woman driving the minivan suffered multiple broken bones and underwent multiple surgeries for a brain bleed. One of the occupants of the SUV suffered a broken back.
The charges stated that a forensic examination of two cell phones seized from the semi-truck determined that Mitilien made or received four phone calls and dealt with nine text messages while he was driving the truck on the morning of the crash. The examination also determined that YouTube videos were playing, and one of them was 31 minutes long and was playing when the crash occurred.
Mitilien earlier entered a guilty plea to a felony count of criminal vehicular operation. In exchange, another felony count of criminal vehicular operation and a gross misdemeanor count of the same charge were dismissed as part of a plea agreement.
The Florida man was sentenced today to a total of 90 days in jail and five years on probation. The jail sentence will be served in 30 day increments over three years. The sentencing order also indicates the court will consider ordering him to pay restitution in a future order.
***CORRECTION***the original story indicated the sentence was 30 days in jail.
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Gallery Credit: Kolby Fedore, Townsquare Media; Photos collected from Getty Images
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