Man charged in Lake Elmo accident that killed 5-year-old in January

A man is currently facing charges in connection with an accident in Lake Elmo in January that killed five-year-old Morgan Petersen.

Jeffrey Dean Alexander Jr., 47, was charged on Monday with two counts of vehicular manslaughter. One count states that he was under the influence of alcohol at the time of the accident, and the other count states that he was driving “grossly negligently.”

Alexander has been charged by summons, but is not in custody.

As previously reported, first responders were dispatched to the accident at the intersection of Highway 36 and Lake Elmo Boulevard at around 8:45 p.m. on January 20.

According to court documents, a Ford Focus had broken down at the intersection in the left lane of Highway 36 due to a mechanical problem. The Ford, driven by Christopher Petersen, Morgan's father, was struck from behind by a Nissan Pathfinder driven by Alexander.

Both vehicles suffered significant damage.

Morgan was taken to the hospital where she was pronounced dead.

Before the crash, Alexander was driving behind another vehicle. Witnesses and traffic cameras showed that the vehicle had changed lanes to avoid the broken-down Ford and Alexander had crashed into it, court documents say.

State Patrol accident reconstruction experts determined that the disabled Ford's hazard lights were visible for a quarter of a mile. They also determined that Alexander was traveling 81 miles per hour five seconds before the crash, 75 miles per hour four seconds before the crash, and 62-63 miles per hour at the time of the crash. The speed limit for that stretch of Highway 36 is 65 miles per hour.

A blood sample taken a few hours after the accident revealed that Alexander had a blood alcohol content of 0.056 per mille and the presence of clonazepam, which had been prescribed to Alexander.

State Patrol officials identified the following factors contributing to the accident:

• Alexander “did not recognize the danger posed by the broken-down Ford before moving into the left lane.”
• Speeding
• Impairment by alcohol and clonazepam
• Alexander “failed to maintain sufficient distance between his vehicle and the vehicles in front of him to be able to react to hazards on the road.”