Hundreds mourn Rochester teen killed in car crash
A vigil Sunday night honored Erika Cruz, whose life was cut short by an alleged drunk driver Tuesday. 9:26 pm, Feb. 28, 2021 ×
Marcela Cruz prays at a makeshift memorial for her daughter, Erika Cruz, at a candlelight Sunday night at Eighth Avenue and 12th Street Southeast in Rochester. Cruz was killed at the intersection Tuesday by a driver police say was drunk. Little attended Mayo High School with Cruz and then attended University of St. Thomas with her in St. Paul. (John Molseed / jmolseed@postbulletin.com)
Erika Cruz was a couple blocks shy of home when a driver slammed into the car she was in, ending her life Tuesday night. She was 18.
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As is the case for most sentences in Minnesota, Abdullahi will serve 2/3 of his sentence in prison and the remaining 1/3 on supervised release, assuming there are no disciplinary offenses while he is in prison. There remains slightly less than 10 months left on his in-prison sentence.
Abdullahi had originally been charged with four felonies in connection to the Aug. 7, 2019, shooting at the Meadow Park Apartments complex, 1430 Fourth Ave. SE, that left a 25-year-old man a quadriplegic in need of round-the-clock medical care.
Assistant Olmsted County Attorney Joseph Rosholt noted that the victim objected to the plea deal in this case.
Offering an explanation for the sentence, Rosholt said there were concerns about the ability to introduce the victim s testimony at trial as there were extensive legal arguments about whether a deposition taken remotely would be allowed as evidence. Rosholt also noted that all evidence indicated that codefendant Iman Iman was the shooter and that the