BIG LAKE, Minn. (WCCO) — At the side of Sherburne County Road 17, west of Big Lake, is a simple memorial. It’s made of fresh flowers and a couple of simple crosses. The somber marker is a tragic reminder of one man’s alleged reckless driving and the innocent lives it cost.
The heartbreak for Fosse’s family is overwhelming. Brien Wickham leaves behind two little girls, ages nine and six.
“My son and his girlfriend died for nothing,” said stepfather, Rick Fosse.
The girls no longer have a father after the April 18 accident that killed Wickham and his girlfriend, Jacque Lee of Ramsey, and the mother of a 2-year-old little boy.
The young couple was out for quick motorcycle ride before the youngest daughter would arrive home from kindergarten, when an out-of-control driver struck them broadside.
“My understanding was it was her (Lee’s) first time she’d been on a motorcycle. He just took her out for a ride,” said Fosse.
Cody Moen of Big Lake is now charged with causing their deaths. He appeared in Sherburne County Court to face two counts of criminal vehicular homicide. The April accident is the fourth time in two years that Moen was involved in a speeding or reckless driving incident.
“What really made this egregious was his speed,” said Sheriff’s Department Captain, Scott Fildes.
An accident reconstruction team determined that Moen was driving 40 miles over the 55 miles per hour posted speed limit on the county road. He was apparently trying to pass another vehicle on the shoulder when he lost control and went over the median, into the oncoming lanes.
“The reconstruction showed us that he started passing a car on the right gravel shoulder at 95 miles per hour,” Fildes said.
On Memorial Day, Wickham’s two little girls visited their father’s roadside memorial — too young to understand how carelessness has a human cost.
“He’s (Moen) a very careless driver and I don’t think he should even get out on bail,” said Fosse.
Moen did post $20,000 bail and will remain free pending his next court appearance on June 27.
