Suspects charged in street racing crash that killed 2 teens in Eagan

2 charged in deadly Eagan street racing crash

Two drivers are facing hefty criminal charges for their alleged roles in a high-speed crash last month that killed two teens in Eagan.

Authorities believe the June 14 crash that split a Jeep Compass in half was connected to street racing. The driver of that Jeep, 19-year-old Reed Robert Schultz, was pronounced dead at the scene; a passenger, 18-year-old Finnian Thomas Cronin, died from his injuries two weeks later, on July 1.

Two other vehicles were involved in the crash near the intersection of Dodd Road and Highway 55 — a Honda Accord and a Dodge Durango. According to a criminal complaint, the Honda had “significant” damage, but the driver had left the scene before police arrived. The Dodge, meanwhile, was undamaged.

The driver of the Dodge, 24-year-old Melody Lynn Little of West St. Paul, told officers she and the drivers of the Jeep and the Honda were driving from one “car meet up” in South St. Paul to another in Eagan. Little admitted to going “way too fast,” but she denied they were racing, the complaint states. She said she was driving 60-70 mph down Dodd Road when she decided to slow down.

The abandoned Honda was registered to 20-year-old Jordan John Wieland, who police found at a hospital after the crash. Wieland corroborated details of the “car meet up” and estimated he was driving about 90 mph right before the crash. The intersection with Highway 55 and a curve in the road “came out of nowhere,” he said.

Wieland said he knew the Jeep was “really f—ed up” but didn’t call 911 and left the scene. He also admitted to drinking two tequila shots earlier in the day, and his blood-alcohol concentration registered at 0.013, charging documents state.

Witnesses who spoke with investigators said the Jeep, Dodge and Honda were part of a “meet up” and broke off from a larger group of cars. They estimated the cars to be traveling at 100 mph or more. Cellphone footage of the interior of the Dodge and Honda moments before the crash captured their speedometers indicating speeds of around 110 mph.

Little and Wieland are both charged with two counts each of third-degree murder and criminal vehicular homicide. Both defendants have nationwide warrants out for their arrests.

The post Suspects charged in street racing crash that killed 2 teens in Eagan first appeared on KSTP.com 5 Eyewitness News.