Man charged in Stacy crash that seriously hurt 6-year-old

STACY, Minn. — A North Branch man faces multiple charges in connection with a crash that seriously injured a 6-year-old and hurt three others north of the Twin Cities on Saturday.

The 39-year-old man is charged with four counts of criminal vehicular operation, according to court documents filed in Chisago County Tuesday. The charges accuse the man of being under the influence of a controlled substance at the time of the crash.

Chisago County deputies responded to a crash near the intersection of Stacy Trail and Falcon Avenue North just after 10:30 a.m. Saturday, a criminal complaint states. They found two vehicles with significant damage.

The driver of one of the vehicles said he was leaving a gas station when another vehicle "traveling at a high rate of speed and fishtailing" hit him, the complaint states. Surveillance footage allegedly confirms his account. Aside from the driver, his vehicle contained another adult and two children, ages 6 and 17.

The 6-year-old was airlifted to a hospital after the crash. She suffered bleeding around her brain and acute respiratory failure and remains intubated at the hospital. The 17-year-old broke a rib and both adults were "stiff and sore," the complaint states.

The driver of the other vehicle — the man charged — smelled of alcohol and told witnesses and deputies a woman was driving his car, but "all evidence from the scene refuted this assertation," the complaint said.

The man was arrested and taken to a hospital, where his "behavior fluctuated dramatically," according to the complaint.

"This same behavior was observed at the crash scene by law enforcement," the complaint said. "Deputies believe Defendant was impaired by a controlled substance due [to] their observations of defendant."

Results of a blood test are pending. The man remains in custody.