Avon man charged with murder and other felonies from Becker car crash that killed 1 and seriously injured another
Detroit Lakes, Minn. (KDLM) – An Avon man has been charged with multiple felonies, including: third-degree murder, two counts of criminal vehicular homicide and two counts of criminal vehicular operation, stemming from a fatal crash on Highway 10 in Becker last Saturday.
On Aug. 19 at 1:10 a.m., 23-year-old Hunter Michael Buckentine, of Avon, was travelling westbound on Highway 10 at a high rate of speed in an Infiniti Q50 when an eastbound state trooper encountered the vehicle.
According to court records, the trooper’s radar showed Buckentine’s vehicle travelling 130 mph in a 60 mph zone and the trooper turned around to attempt to catch up to the vehicle.
The trooper was then waved down by a woman near 97th Street who said their Chevy Colbalt was rearended by a vehicle going so fast they had no time to react. The impact on the Colbalt caused the vehicle to spin and rollover.
During the crash, two unrestrained passengers inside the Cobalt were ejected from the vehicle. 38-year-old Candice Carmen Pooler of Clarissa, Minn. was airlifted from the scene with life-threatening injuries and 34-year-old Jordan Dennis Kramer of Clarissa, Minnesota, was pronounced dead at the scene.
According to the criminal complaint, Buckentine was traveling about 80 mph when he continued to speed up and eventually took out his phone and took a Snapchat photo of his speedometer that read 150 mph with the caption that read “New Record.”
The witness also said once Buckentine took the photo, he looked up and saw the taillights from the Cobalt before making impact with the vehicle.
Buckentine allegedly took two shots of alcohol in the hours leading up to the crash while he was at Beck’s Pub in Becker. He left the bar at about 1 a.m. and the witness said Buckentine was supposed to be the sober driver, but they still thought he was “okay” to drive.
Buckentines initial court appearance in Sherburne County District Court is scheduled for Sept. 20.
Barnesville woman injured in Otter Tail County crash with semi
A Barnesville woman was injured in a two-vehicle crash involving a semi-tractor trailer in Otter Tail County on Wednesday afternoon.
On Aug. 23 at 3:22 p.m., a 2011 Cheverolet Suburban, driven by 21-year-old Samantha Leah Lammers of Barnesville, was northbound on County Road 11 when it struck a 2002 Mack Semi, driven by 41-year-old Johnathan Martin Phillips of Leonard, Minn., at the Highway 108 intersection.
Lammers suffered non-life-threatening injuries during the crash and was transported to Sanford Health in Fargo for treatment.
Phillips did not report any injuries at the scene.
The Minnesota State Patrol stated both drivers were wearing their seatbelts at the time of the crash and alcohol does not appear to have played a role in the incident.
MN DNR asks hunters not to harvest tagged bears during hunting season
The Minnesota DNR is reminding hunters not to harvest marked research bears when the season opens on September 1st. Project leader Andy Tri says the bears with GPS radio collars all have large cattle-style ear tags.
He says “It is legal to shoot a collared bear, but we ask that folks do not because we’re working on a phase of this study that requires the bears to go from cubs all the way to their first reproduction. And so it takes a long time – five or six years of constant monitoring – to get that information.”)
Tri says most of the 40 radio-collared bears are in the Brainerd, Little Falls, and Grand Rapids areas. The state had the highest number of bear license applicants this year since 2001.
St. Cloud State University to offer cannabis certification courses this fall
St. Cloud State University is introducing a certification-based cannabis education curriculum with classes beginning this fall.
The university said the programs span over six-month time frame, starting on Sept. 11 and Nov. 6.
The curriculum is broken into four different categories:
- Cannabis Healthcare and Medicine
- Cannabis Agriculture and Horticulture
- The Business of Cannabis
- Cannabis Compliance and Risk Management
The non-credit certificate programs are established by the partnership of SCSU’s Professional and Continuing Education division and Green Flower, a California-based cannabis education company.
Each program is also offered completely online with payment plans available. Students can work at their own speed within the six months the program is offered.
According to a recent jobs report, cannabis job growth across the United States has continued to rise, with over 428,000 legal cannabis jobs established in 2022.
Moorhead woman arrested following high-speed chase
A Moorhead woman arrested in Otter Tail County following a high-speed pursuit late Tuesday night.
38-year-old Crystal Borseth is being held for fleeing a police officer.
On Aug. 22, a Minnesota state trooper was on I-94 near Rothsay around 10:30 p.m. when he spotted Borseth’s vehicle.
The officer was aware of the vehicle because it was involved in an earlier pursuit with Alexandria police.
The trooper chased Borseth through Wilkin County and into Clay County before a tire-disabling device and a pit maneuver stopped the car and she was arrested.
A 36-year-old male passenger was released without any charges.
Burgum gets point across on one leg during first Republican presidential debate
The first 2024 Republican presidential debate took place on Thursday that included North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum, who’s attendance was in doubt after rupturing his Achille’s tendon the night before playing pick-up basketball.
Burgum was on stage, standing on one leg behind the podium and addressed his injury during his opening comments on stage.
“I’m from a town of 300 people and it’s a big deal to make it on this stage with all these folks,” said Burgum, during the debate. “When they were wishing me well, I think I took it too literally when they said go to Milwaukee and break a leg.”
Burgum said he was examined by a doctor for the Milwaukee Bucks on Wednesday.
Even on one leg, Burgum was able to articulate his position on the economy of climate change, which he said trades oil for Chinese batteries produced through coal-powered facilities.
“We’ve got a plan right now, $1.2 trillion, of Green New Deal spending buried in the “inflation creation act,”” said Burgum. “It’s something that is just subsidizing China. If we’re going to stop buying oil from the middle east and start buying batteries from China, we’re just trading OEPC for SINOPEC. And then belatedly, the Biden administration says, no, we’re going to put sanctions on Russian oil. Well, then it’s 20% off, and who’s buying it, China. If you buy a battery in this country, if you buy a solar panel, it’s being produced in a plant in China, powered by coal, or it’s being powered by oil and gas at 20% off. And every farming in this country would like to buy diesel at 20% off, just like they are buying it in China.”
An Aug. 19-21 Rassmussen Poll of 818 likely-voters in the Republican primary listed the support for Gov. Burgum below 1%.
Highway 9 Phase 2 reconstruction project gets underway Aug. 28 in Barnesville
Phase 2 of the Highway 9 reconstruction project in Barnesville is expected to get underway on Monday.
Starting Aug. 28, Highway 9, or Main Avenue, in Barnesville will close from Front Street to Fourth Avenue.
According to MnDOT, the roadway will be impassable to all traffic from Front Street to the railroad tracks and thru-traffic will remain detoured to Interstate 94 and County Road 30 until the project is completed in September.
Paving on Phase 1 of the Highway 9 project, between Main Avenue and Highway 34, and Phase 3, from Highway 34 to Interstate 94, has been completed and will reopen temporarily for Barnesville Potato Days on Aug. 25-26.
MnDOT also warned drivers that some concrete installation and other miscellaneous work still needs to be completed in zones one and three, so drivers should slow down in the work zones and be vigilante for road workers.
To learn more about the Highway 9 reconstruction project, visit the MnDOT website.
Moorhead suspends school resource officer program due to new education bill’s technique restrictions
Looking for more clarification on a new state law, Moorhead police have decided to pull school resource officers from all public schools.
The police department says the decision was made in conjunction with school administration.
Police departments, the Minnesota Police Chiefs Association and other professional law enforcement groups have expressed concern that the law will hinder the work of resource officers in controlling fights or other disturbances. The language “prohibits the use of prone restraint”
Until there’s a solution, Moorhead SROS have been returned to regular patrol duty. Police officers have been in Moorhead Area Public Schools for about 30 years.
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