8 Years for .36 in Deadly Crash

MINNEAPOLIS - A Minneapolis woman was sentenced Monday to eight years in prison for her role in a drunk driving crash that killed a Blaine, Minnesota man on Highway 252 last December.

Melissa Heus, 32, pleaded guilty in September to criminal vehicular homicide, criminal vehicular operation and DWI in the crash that killed 37-year-old James Wolter in Brooklyn Center. Heus was sentenced Monday to 96 months and 18 months in prison, which will run concurrently.

Brooklyn Center police responded to the crash at the intersection of Highway 252 and 66th Avenue shortly after 6 p.m. on December 13, 2008. Wolter was pronounced dead at the scene, found after firefighters put out the flames that engulfed his burning car.

Witnesses said Heus was driving southbound on Hwy 252 at a high rate of speed before slamming into the back of Wolter's car, causing it to spin out and burst into flames.

Heus had no visible injuries, but was slurring her speech. When officers asked how much she had to drink, to which she said," What does it matter?" When asked a second time, she said, "Not going to tell."

Heus physically struggled with officers and EMTs at the scene, and was uncooperative with staff at North Memorial Medical Center.

Roughly two hours after the crash, a blood sample taken from Heus registered a blood alcohol content of .36 -- four times the legal limit for intoxication in Minnesota.

Heus was convicted of drunk driving in 2004 in Hennepin County, and a 2006 drunk driving conviction in Dunn County, Wisconsin.