HASTINGS, Minn. — *EDITOR'S NOTE: The above video first aired Oct. 27, 2021.
A 28-year-old Minneapolis man pleaded guilty Tuesday for his role in a 2021 crash that killed a priest who was riding his bicycle in Rosemount.
Trejean Derrell Curry pleaded guilty to one count of criminal vehicular homicide after prosecutors said he was driving in a "grossly negligent manner" when he hit a bicyclist in Rosemount on Oct. 25, 2021. The bicyclist was later identified as Rev. Dennis Dempsey, who was the lead pastor at the Church of the Risen Savior in Burnsville.
"Father Dempsey’s death serves as yet another tragic and painful reminder as to why it’s so extremely important for drivers to give their full attention to the road when they get behind the wheel,” said County Attorney Kathy Keena in a press release. “My sincere condolences to the friends, family members and loved ones of Father Dempsey.”
Curry was initially arrested at the scene — County Road 42 and 145th Street West in Rosemount — on Oct. 25, where police found he was driving with a revoked license. Two days later, on Oct. 27, Curry was released from jail pending results from the investigation, including crash reconstruction data from the Minnesota State Patrol.
According to prosecutors, it was revealed in the months following the crash that Curry and Dempsey were both traveling west on the north shoulder of County Road 42 when Dempsey was struck by Curry's vehicle.
Court documents say crash reconstruction showed two tire skid marks from Curry's vehicle on the shoulder of the roadway prior to the point of impact. The marks then traveled straight ahead until veering left toward traffic just before impact.
A search warrant to analyze Curry's phone further revealed that its screen was activated leading up to the crash, and an outgoing text message was found, saying, "Just got in an accident biker got in the way."
The findings from a search warrant to obtain a sample of Curry's blood determined that neither alcohol nor drugs were a factor in the crash.
Upon completing their preliminary investigation, authorities issued an arrest warrant for Curry on March 17.
According to the original complaint, Curry told officers that Dempsey had swerved in front of him from the north side of the shoulder and into the traffic lane. He told police he couldn't move over because a car was next to him, and he couldn't stop because there was also a driver behind him.
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