Police: Lake Elmo crash that killed girl, 5, in stalled car tied to driver who had been drinking

The collision on a Lake Elmo highway that killed a 5-year-old girl sitting in her family’s stalled car was caused by an SUV driver who police suspect was under the influence of alcohol at the time, according to newly filed court records.

Morgan Rae Petersen was a passenger in a Ford Focus that was stopped in the left lane of eastbound Hwy. 36 just before 9 p.m. Saturday when it was hit from behind, according to an online fundraising campaign created on behalf of the family.

The SUV’s driver, Jeffrey D. Alexander, 47, of St. Paul, hit the stalled car at “highway speeds” and suffered non-life threatening injuries, the State Patrol said. Alexander was ticketed last spring for a similar offense in St. Paul.

The stalled car’s driver, Christopher S. Petersen, 43, of St. Paul, and his son, 10-year-old Mason Ries, survived their injuries, the patrol said. Petersen’s sister, Nicole Guillette, wrote in the online fundraiser that Morgan “suffered a broken neck and serious brain injuries that were not survivable.”

A state trooper has collected blood samples from Alexander to have them tested for alcohol content and illicit drug use, according to a search warrant affidavit filed Tuesday. Those test results are pending.

Alexander hit the stalled car from behind despite the flashing of the smaller vehicle’s hazard lights, the affidavit read.

A law enforcement officer at the scene reported the odor of alcohol coming from Alexander, who “also admitted to drinking two beers earlier,” the affidavit continued.

Court records in Minnesota show that Alexander has been convicted three times after having his license suspended.

He also was ticketed in May and convicted for following too closely after he hit a vehicle from behind that was stopped for a traffic light at Dale Street and St. Anthony Avenue in St. Paul, according to court records, which did not note any injuries.

Morgan had been wearing a seat belt. Her father and brother were not wearing seat belts and suffered less serious injuries, according to the State Patrol.