A passenger in one of two vehicles involved in a minor nighttime crash north of the Twin Cities got out of her vehicle to check on the damage and was fatally struck by a third motorist who drove away and was later tracked down because of a tip from her family, authorities said Tuesday.
The incident occurred about 10:15 p.m. Monday along Hwy. 95, just west of Cambridge, the State Patrol said.
The passenger who was hit and killed after getting out of a car was identified as Patricia M. Wolter, 54, who lives southwest of Princeton.
She was riding in a car driven by her son, Joseph G. Turner, 37, of Zimmerman. He is suspected of being drunk at the time of the collision, said a statement issued late Tuesday morning by the State Department of Public Safety (DPS).
While Turner allegedly was driving while intoxicated, his mother was a passenger who had her license revoked less than three weeks earlier for lack of auto insurance, according to the DPS.
The patrol has yet to identify the third motorist, who initially stopped, but then fled after hitting Wolter.
"A family member [of the driver who fled] provided the tip to our office," said Lt. Tiffani Schweigart, the patrol's chief spokeswoman. "We have recovered the vehicle and identified the driver. The driver is cooperating and will be formally ID'd once interviewed by our investigators."
Turner was taken to Cambridge Medical Center for noncritical injuries and was subjected to testing for blood alcohol content. Results from that test are pending.
