Guilty plea filed in Midway Road crash case

Rodney Drake Scandin Jr., 36, pleaded guilty late last month to five felony charges of criminal vehicular operation, after admitting he had been drinking when he caused a crash that injured five people on Midway Road in late June.

According to the criminal complaint, St. Louis County deputies responded to a hit and run collision at 4:47 p.m. June 26. According to witnesses at the scene, a Subaru occupied by four family members was stopped on Midway road facing north, waiting to turn west onto Stark Road, when they were hit from behind by a pickup truck. The crash forced the car into oncoming traffic, where they were struck broadside by a full-size truck pulling an 18-foot enclosed trailer. The work truck, trailer and Subaru ended up in the ditch on the west side of the road. The driver of the Ford F-150, Scandin, fled the scene. Witnesses were unable to keep up with the truck.

The driver of the Subaru was transported to the hospital with a concussion, multiple broken ribs and bruised lungs. The front seat passenger in the Subaru was taken to a Duluth hospital and later transferred to a Twin Cities area hospital due to the severity of his injuries, which included a shattered pelvis and severe internal injuries. The left rear passenger was taken to the hospital with a broken collarbone, broken toes and bruised lung. The right rear passenger had injuries including broken teeth, a broken nose and multiple lacerations.

The pickup truck that hit the family did not stop, but officers were able to determine it was a Ford F-150 from pieces located at the scene. After reviewing security footage from a business north of the accident scene, they released photos of the vehicle in a press release.

After the press release came out, Scandin turned himself in.

A GoFundMe page for the family has raised $43,770 so far.

Under the terms of a plea agreement, Scandin will receive a stay of imposition, if he successfully completes six years of probation. He could be required to spend up to 150 days in jail over the next five years. As part of the plea agreement, the charges were changed from “Criminal vehicular operation-Driver who causes collision leaves scene” to “Criminal vehicular operation-Under influence alcohol.”

The sentencing hearing for Scandin was initially set for Dec. 17 but is being rescheduled, likely sometime in February of 2021.