Fired trooper Shane Roper booked three months after being charged with manslaughter in Rochester crash

ROCHESTER – Former Minnesota state trooper Shane Roper was booked and released at the Olmsted County Adult Detention Center on Monday on charges related to the death of Owatonna teenager Olivia Flores.

The appearance marked the first time Roper had been brought in for processing since he was charged in July with nine criminal counts, including second-degree manslaughter and criminal vehicular homicide.

Roper, who is free on conditional bail, had been given 14 days to report to the detention center after a judge determined on Sept. 26 that the court had “inadvertently neglected to order” that he be booked and fingerprinted.

Roper was fired from the patrol in early September after an internal investigation found there was “no justification” for the way he was driving when he crashed his patrol car into another vehicle occupied by Flores, 18, and two others. Flores died the next day of blunt-force injuries. Five others were seriously injured in the three-car wreck.

An investigation by the Rochester Police Department found that Roper had been traveling at speeds of up to 83 mph without his emergency signals activated in the lead up to the crash. The patrol called Roper’s driving “reckless” and said his conduct “seriously undermined his integrity and trustworthiness with the public.”

Prior to the May 18 fatal crash, Roper had been disciplined on four occasions for careless or reckless driving, including a February 2019 crash that injured another officer. His discipline amounted to two days of unpaid suspension and two written reprimands.

In August, Roper pleaded not guilty to all nine criminal charges. He is due back in court on Nov. 21 for a settlement conference. If no settlement is reached, a jury trial is scheduled for March 2025.