An unlicensed driver was jailed on allegations she was under the influence when she caused a collision at a Minneapolis intersection that killed two women in the other vehicle, police said Wednesday.
Teniki Latrice Elise Steward, 38, of Minneapolis was booked into the Hennepin County jail Tuesday on suspicion of criminal vehicular homicide in connection with the crash late Monday morning.
Police records show they believe she was under the influence of a controlled substance at the time of the crash.
Also Wednesday, officials identified the two women who died in the crash as Esther Jean Fulks, 53, and Rose Elaine Reece, 57, both of Minneapolis. They died soon after the wreck at 26th and Emerson avenues N., the Hennepin County Medical Examiner’s Office said. Fulks died at the scene, while Reece was declared dead at North Memorial Health Hospital.
Steward and a man with her were taken by emergency medical personnel to a hospital for treatment of their injuries, as was a 17-year-old boy waiting at a Metro Transit bus shelter to be picked up for school, police said.
An HCMC spokesperson said that Steward’s passenger, 61-year-old Jerome Marcell Williams of Minneapolis, was in satisfactory condition. Court records show the two have shared a home at one time.
Officials have not released the identity of the injured teenager nor disclosed his medical condition.
Steward’s northbound vehicle on Emerson struck the women’s vehicle as it headed east on 26th, police said. The impact sent the eastbound vehicle into the bus shelter, where it caught fire.
