MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) — A 23-year-old man pleaded guilty to one count of careless driving Wednesday and was sentenced to 30 days in jail for a crash that killed two construction workers on Interstate 35W.
Kirk Edward Deamos, of Raymore, Missouri, was also sentenced to 200 hours of community service and a fine of $100.
Deamos was driving on 35W on Oct. 13, 2011 in Burnsville when he hit and killed 47-year-old Craig Carlson, of Ramsey, and 44-year-old Ronald Rajkowski, of St. Joseph, who were working as electricians at a construction site.
Dakota County Attorney James Backstrom said that under Minnesota law, felony charges were not possible because drugs or alcohol were not involved and gross negligence could not be proved. In addition, Deamos did not flee the scene.
Backstrom also noted that he’s been trying to increase the penalty for careless driving resulting in death since 2007.
“This is another tragic example of the need to have a law in place that deals with taking negligent risks while driving that reflect it is more serious to hit and kill a human being than it is to damage a mailbox,” Backstrom said in a press release.
According to the complaint, Deamos was driving a 1998 Mitsubishi 3000 GT northbound on Interstate 35W near McAndrews Road in Burnsville at about 12:33 p.m. that day when he lost control of his vehicle. The vehicle veered off into the ditch and struck a pole before hitting and killing Carlson and Rajkowski.
Police records show that Deamos was stopped in Iowa the day of the accident and cited for traveling 85 miles per hour in a zone where the speed limit is 70.
