Sartell Man Sentenced for Fatal Drunk Driving Crash

(KNSI) — A 26-year-old Sartell man will spend the next year behind bars after he admitted to driving drunk and killing a pedestrian last summer.

According to the criminal complaint filed in Benton County District Court on July 28th, 2023, Tyler Nies told officers he was driving his pickup truck north on Benton Drive in the righthand lane and saw a man walking in the grass next to the curb. Nies told investigators he tried to slam on his brakes when he saw the man step into the street as if he were going to cross the road but could not stop. He told officers he had been drinking.

The man was identified as 47-year-old Kevin Donald Oehmen, who died from his injuries.

A witness at the scene said he was in the left lane behind Nies, and Nies suddenly veered into his lane and came to a stop. He said he didn’t see the pedestrian until after the crash. The witness “estimated both vehicles were traveling approximately five miles above the posted speed limit of 35 miles an hour.”

Officers administered field sobriety tests at the scene and a preliminary breath test. The criminal complaint says Nies’s blood alcohol concentration was .129.

Nies pled guilty to criminal vehicular homicide. He was sentenced to one year in jail, with a nearly six year prison sentence suspended. Other conditions include serving ten years probation, completing 80 hours of community service, undergoing chemical dependency evaluations, going to a victim impact panel, and staying away from drugs and alcohol.

___