At 8:17 p.m. on March 23, 2015, a 12-person jury acquitted David Shayne Hamil of all four counts of criminal vehicular homicide stemming from the fatal rollover crash that occurred July 4, 2014, on Highway 31 just north of Pelican Rapids, Minnesota. The victim died when the car driven by Mr. Hamil left the highway, traveled through a ditch, and rolled into Franklin Lake. The victim was thrown from the vehicle during the single car accident and was later found dead roughly 10 yards from shore.
Although experts for the State testified that Mr. Hamil was traveling at 89 miles per hour and had a blood alcohol content in excess of .14 at the time of the crash, the jury deliberated just over three hours before rendering its verdict of acquittal on the homicide charges.
The trial took five days and included the testimony of 15 witnesses and five experts. It was legally and factually a very difficult case. Daniel Lofgren of Lofgren and Associates (763) 441-6505 was our expert reconstructionist. Glenn Hardin of The Tox Group, Inc. (651) 338-7982 was our expert toxicologist. They were instrumental in our success and I cannot thank them enough for their efforts and professionalism.
Heidi Narimani was our investigator. Her efforts toward investigating the case, scheduling, assisting with witnesses, and functioning as a trial aid, were invaluable.
Press coverage can be seen here:
http://www.fergusfallsjournal.com/2015/03/otter-tail-jury-acquits-florida-man-of-vehicular-homicide/