Update: Woman charged with criminal vehicular homicide tied to 2022 Highway 22 crash

Published 8:32 pm Sunday, September 1, 2024

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A Kiester woman is facing multiple charges tied to the death of a Wells man in September 2022 in a crash on Minnesota Highway 22 in Faribault County.

Adrienne Bryan was charged in Faribault County District Court on Tuesday with seven counts, including three counts of criminal vehicular homicide, one for operating a vehicle in a grossly negligent manner and causing the death of another, another for operating a vehicle with negligence while under the influence of a combination of alcohol or controlled substances and causing the death of another and another for operating a vehicle in a negligent manner while having any amount of a Schedule I or II controlled substance in her system and caused the death of another.

She also faces three counts of criminal vehicular operation and one count of reckless driving. Aside from the reckless driving charge, which is a gross misdemeanor, the other charges are felonies.

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Bryan, 47, who was traveling northbound on Highway 22 in a 2016 Dodge Journey, reportedly struck a 2022 John Deere 4020 diesel tractor that was also northbound on Highway 22 near 90th Street in Foster Township on Sept. 27, 2022.

The tractor’s driver, Michael Phillip Wegner, 70, died at the scene of the crash, Bryan received a broken hand and one of her minor passengers sustained internal bleeding and was airlifted to Rochester for treatment, according to court records.

The court complaint states Bryan was traveling from her home in Kiester to Albert Lea and admitted to consuming a single alcoholic beverage earlier in the day over the noon hour, though witnesses, including EMTs observed alcohol on her breath.

She also reportedly admitted to consuming a family member’s ADHD medication and admitted to “recently” smoking marijuana.

Bryan told authorities she was driving about 55 mph and that she had her low beam headlights illuminated. The crash occurred sometime between 7:30 and 7:47 p.m., and sunset that day was recorded at 7:03 p.m.

She told authorities she reportedly came upon the tractor parked in the northbound lane of Highway 22 and that it had no lights or illumination. She said she was not aware of the tractor’s presence until immediately before the crash.

While the crash reconstruction discovered there was a lack of proper illumination on the tractor, upon further investigation, authorities discovered Bryan was traveling 70 mph 0.1 seconds before the collision and never applied any brake, according to a search of the sensing and diagnostic module factory-installed on the Dodge Journey. The vehicle’s speedometer was also frozen at 70 mph following the collision.

The speed limit in that area was 60 mph.

According to the court complaint, lab results of Bryan’s blood alcohol content after the crash showed .053. She also tested positive for oxycodone, opiates, THC, amphetamine and methamphetamine.

In court on Tuesday, Judge Troy Timmerman set unconditional bail at $200,000 but also approved a conditional option where Bryan could be released on her promise to appear for her next court hearing as long as she followed a series of conditions, including no alcohol or controlled substance use or possession, complying with random testing  and having no contact with the victim’s family, among others.

She is next slated to appear in court Sept. 9.