Man admits to road rage outburst near Northfield, killing veteran on way to war-related treatment

A southern Minnesota man admitted Friday to losing his temper after a fender-bender near Northfield and fatally beating a veteran who was heading to treatment for war-related ailments.

Leslie S. Sanders, 53, of Faribault, pleaded guilty in Rice County District Court to second-degree murder in the attack on 79-year-old Larry Myers on June 27, 2022, in Dundas. Myers died in the hospital about 1½ weeks later.

The plea deal calls for Sanders to receive a sentence of 11⅔ years. With credit for time in jail since his arrest, Sanders is expected to serve roughly 6½ years in prison and the balance on supervised release.

Sanders had been scheduled to go on trial starting Monday. Instead, he will be sentenced on Oct. 12 before Judge Troy Timmerman.

"This was a negotiated plea agreement between the defendant and the state," said County Attorney Brian Mortenson. "The victim's family is on board with the resolution. A factor in their decision was that a plea of guilty would require the defendant to acknowledge what he did to Larry Myers."

Wayne Myers, Larry's son, said after the plea terms were reached that "there is no mercy for the man, but the circumstances of the way of the law in Minnesota, we don't want to drag it any more than we have to. ... We're accepting what happened that they couldn't do any more than that. We can move on with our lives now."

Myers was driving to dialysis to treat the effects of Agent Orange that riddled his body with cancer when he was involved in a minor collision on Hwy. 3 with Sanders. Sanders then attacked Myers, leaving him with numerous broken facial bones and a significant brain injury.

Myers served in the Air Force from 1964 to 1968 and rose to the rank of staff sergeant while in Vietnam, his online obituary read. After leaving the military, he was active in the Veterans of Foreign Wars and a lifelong member of the American Legion.

Wayne Myers said his father received the Air Force Commendation Medal, which he earned while providing ground support in a combat zone.

Wayne Myers recalled his sister summing up their father's legacy, saying,

"We don't want his life defined by his death, but Mr. Sanders' life will be defined by his death."

In the standard plea document, defendants are asked to list their educational background. Sanders filled his out and added that he served more than three years in the military and was honorably discharged.

According to the criminal complaint:

Dundas Police Chief Todd Hanson said he arrived to find the vehicles stopped and people standing in the median. He said he saw Sanders yelling at the crowd.

Witnesses told Hanson that Sanders got out of his "still rolling" pickup, approached the driver's side of an SUV and hit Myers numerous times without provocation.

Myers was able to tell Hanson he was driving on Cannon City Boulevard about halfway between Faribault and Northfield when Sanders tried to pass him and hit his SUV as he re-entered the lane.

An ambulance took Myers from the scene about 4½ miles to the north on Hwy. 3 in Dundas to a hospital.