Charges: Repeat drunken driver was intoxicated when he caused crash in Maplewood that killed passenger

An unlicensed motorist with a history of drunken driving was again intoxicated when he lost control of his car on a Maplewood highway, hit a pickup in the opposite lane and killed a passenger who was visiting from California to attend a funeral, according to charges.

A warrant was issued Thursday for the arrest of Chue A. Yang of Maplewood, who was charged in Ramsey County District Court with two counts of criminal vehicular homicide in connection with the collision on Dec. 10 that killed his passenger, Tou Moua, 52, of Fresno, Calif.

A law enforcement test of Yang's blood found that his blood alcohol content soon after the crash was 0.146%, more than 1 ¹⁄₂ times the legal limit for driving in Minnesota.

Court records in Minnesota show that Yang has been convicted three times for drunken driving, including as recently as March 2019, when he crashed into a closed garage door.

The State Department of Public Safety said Friday that it has no record of Yang having a Minnesota driver's license. He was stopped for speeding in March 2021 and told the police officer that he did not have a valid license, court records show.

According to the latest charges against Yang:

Pickup driver Edwin Hernandez, who was heading south on snowy Hwy. 61 near E. County Road B, told officers that he saw Yang traveling 60 to 70 miles per hour, swerving "all over the road" without his car's headlights on.

Hernandez said Yang's car jumped the raised median, went airborne and hit his pickup.

Yang, 57, and another passenger, Sammie Tao Moua, 45, of North St. Paul, were taken to Regions Hospital in St. Paul with noncritical injuries.

Sammie Moua informed officers at the scene that everyone in Yang's car were on their way home after drinking alcohol at a funeral.

Hernandez, 22, of Minneapolis, complained of soreness and nausea in the immediate aftermath of the crash but did not require a hospital visit.