2 drunk drivers plead guilty to killing people in separate Minneapolis incidents

Two men pleaded guilty Monday to driving drunk and killing people in separate crashes in Minneapolis.

John Iverson, 50, of Minneapolis, pleaded guilty to criminal vehicular homicide for driving his van on Feb. 3 after drinking heavily at a bar and killing a bicyclist.

Yia Her, 35, of St. Paul, pleaded guilty to one count of fleeing a police officer in a motor vehicle and causing a death and one count of fleeing police and causing a serious injury in a Sept. 9, 2013, case. He crashed into a car, killing one and injuring another.

Both men pleaded guilty as their cases were about to go to trial Monday. Her will be sentenced Wednesday and Iverson will be sentenced Nov. 20.

"Once again, not one but two lives have been needlessly lost and another life has been dramatically altered by severe injuries as a result of drunken driving," Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman said. "People need to stop folks from driving when they are drunk to protect all the innocent victims. Our office can prosecute these crimes and seek prison sentences, but that does not undo the damage."

The victims were Marcus Nalls, 26, a professionally trained sous chef, and Brody Sotona, 20, a college student and aspiring musician.

During Iverson's plea Monday, he admitted to drinking in a bar Feb. 3 and that he drove negligently, striking Nalls on his bicycle and killing him. A later blood test found that Iverson had a blood alcohol level of 0.23 percent, nearly three times the legal limit.

Iverson rejected an offer from the county attorney's office to plead guilty and be sentenced to a prison term consistent with state sentencing guidelines. Instead, he entered a straight plea, and his attorney said he will seek a sentence as little as probation but no more than 41 months in prison. The county attorney's office plans to seek a prison sentence consistent with the guidelines.

According to the criminal complaint, Iverson was driving west on Franklin near Harriet Avenue S. about 9:50 p.m. Feb. 3 when he swerved toward the curb, striking Nalls, who was traveling west on his bike. Iverson crashed into a parked car, went up on the sidewalk and traveled a little farther, all the time with Nalls pinned under his van.

Nalls came to Minnesota from Atlanta, where he commuted by bicycle to and from work in bustling downtown Atlanta for the past few years without incident. When his superiors at the Hyatt Regency said he was being promoted and transferred to their hotel in downtown Minneapolis, Nalls, a professionally trained sous chef, made sure he found just the right place to live for riding his bike to work.

In the other case, Her was pulled over for speeding and weaving shortly before 1 a.m. by a State Patrol officer. As the officer approached the car, Her took off, exited on 11th Street from Interstate 94 and led the trooper on a chase through downtown and across the 3rd Avenue Bridge, according to the complaint. While speeding on Central Avenue, Her ran through a red light at University Avenue and again at 4th Street, where he smashed into a car, killing Sotona, and seriously injuring his passenger, Connor Macklin.

On Monday, Her acknowledged he was drunk but said he drove away to escape from the state trooper. It was the second time he has pleaded guilty to the crimes. The first time, he thought the sentence the judge was about to pronounce was too severe and withdrew his plea and demanded a jury trial instead. Once again, the judge will be free to sentence Her to a prison term within the sentencing guidelines.