A motorist has pleaded guilty to running over a 16-year-old girl and killing the 2-year-old boy she was pushing in a stroller on the shoulder of a northern Minnesota highway.

Jake M. Place, 39, of Nashwauk, Minn., entered his plea in Itasca County District Court last week in connection with the crash on Aug. 1 that seriously injured Alexia N. Carroll, also of Nashwauk, and killed her 2-year-old nephew Logan Dean Klennert.

In exchange for admitting to both criminal vehicular homicide and criminal vehicular operation while having methamphetamine in his system, Place will have the opportunity to argue during his May 14 sentencing for a term below the maximum of 8¾ years.

If he receives the longest sentence possible under the plea deal, Place would serve roughly the first 5¾ years in prison and the balance on supervised release.

"We, of course, were hoping for more time," Carroll's mother, Michelle Hipsag, said Tuesday. Hipsag it's particularly troubling to the family that Place will be able to argue for less time than what is spelled out under sentencing guidelines.

Immediately after the crash, emergency personnel feared Carroll would require amputation of a foot, but "the phenomenal trauma team at St. Luke's [Hospital] in Duluth" spared her that fate, Hipsag said.

Jake Place

Even so, Carroll's mother continued, "She will be affected for the rest of her life, both physically and emotionally. There is no doubt about it."

Carroll, of Nashwauk, was walking south on the right shoulder of Hwy. 65 at 1:17 p.m. when Place's southbound pickup crossed onto the shoulder and hit her and Logan from behind. Place then drove away.

A little more than an hour later, a helicopter pilot working on utilities in the area notified the patrol of the damaged pickup's location. The patrol pulled Place over, and he said he believed he "struck a deer or something," the criminal complaint read.

A patrol sergeant noted that Place's eyes suggested he was under the influence of a controlled substance. He gave a blood sample at the hospital for testing for drug use, which tested positive for meth.

Place's criminal history includes convictions for drug offenses.

Paul Walsh • 612-673-4482