The first thing a drunk driver told cops after plowing through a Minnesota bar, killing two people and injuring a dozen others last year, was “I’m f—” and “I’m probably going to jail.”
Steven Frane Bailey’s prediction did come true. On Monday, a judge sentenced the grandfather, aged 57, to 30 years in prison. He pleaded guilty in May to two counts of third-degree murder and three counts of criminal vehicular operation causing great bodily harm.
Kristina Marie Folkerts and Gabriel Quinn Harvey, both 30, were killed in a crash on September 1, 2024, at Park Tavern in St. Louis Park, a suburb of Minneapolis.
Folkerts and Harvey’s families spoke at Monday’s plea hearing about how their loved ones’ deaths affected them.
Folkerts’ mother wrote, “I will never heal,” in a statement read by a victim advocate. “I’ll never be the same.” I’ve told people that I feel like a shell of a person trying to do what I think I should be doing while feeling empty inside.”
Victims who had survived the incident also testified. Tegan D’Albani spent approximately 40 days in the hospital after being hit by Bailey’s BMW X5.
“I remember seeing the car come,” she said. “It happened so fast that there wasn’t time to respond. I remember lying on the ground and staring at my legs. “They were broken and backwards.”
She had a broken knee, femur, and pelvis, all of which required multiple surgeries. Her recovery is ongoing, and “there’s no end in sight,” she explained.
Prosecutors also showed video of the crash. It showed the BMW in the parking lot, where he collided with a parked vehicle, police wrote. Bailey sped through the parking lot in a “attempted to flee the scene,” colliding with an SUV. His car “continued to accelerate straight toward the patio.”
“After hitting the Black SUV, defendant accelerates straight past a two-lane drive in the parking lot and 11 parking spaces before plowing his vehicle through a metal fence and into the patio seating area,” the investigation’s criminal complaint stated.
Bailey hit “multiple” people and occupied tables without stopping for the entire length of the patio. He didn’t slow down until he came to a “abrupt” stop after colliding with two boulders at the base of a steep incline, police said.
Officers arrived on the scene to find several broken tables and chairs, debris, and a large number of victims, including Folkerts, who was trapped under the car.
Because the BMW was inoperable, cops lifted it to get her out, but paramedics declared her dead. First responders rushed Harvey to the hospital, where doctors pronounced him dead.
According to the affidavit, Bailey stumbled out of the car and collapsed to the ground. Officers overheard him saying, “I’m f—ed” and “I’m probably going to jail.” He also claimed that he intended to brake but instead hit the gas.
Cops noted Bailey’s slurred speech and watery eyes. When officers told him they were going to conduct field sobriety tests, he allegedly said, “You don’t need to do fields, I know what I did.”
According to the affidavit, he had a blood alcohol content of.325—more than four times the legal limit of 0.08. Cops took him to the Hennepin County Jail and informed him that he would face vehicular manslaughter charges. Bailey allegedly said, “You’ve got to be kidding me,” and “My life’s pretty much f—ed now, isn’t it?”
Those who survived sustained serious injuries such as broken legs, pelvises, ribs, and dislocated knees, while others received minor cuts and bruises.
Since the incident, the community has responded with overwhelming support. A GoFundMe campaign for Folkerts has raised more than $230,000. According to the obituary, the mother of three worked at the Tavern and loved her family.
“She was ambitious, a hard worker who adored her Park Tavern family and was a photographer. She also enjoyed music, concerts, and her Starbucks.
Kristina was extremely passionate about her photography, knew exactly what she wanted, and was a visionary in many fields. “She was free-spirited and saw the beauty in everyone,” the obituary stated.
Harvey worked in the ICU at Methodist Hospital as a health unit coordinator and was out with coworkers when the incident occurred, according to a GoFundMe page. He was about to graduate from nursing school.
“Gabe and his partner, Denzel, had recently purchased a home and were in the process of settling in. “There was no one Gabe met who he did not leave an impression on; he always had a smile and a kind word for everyone,” the fundraiser stated. “His ability to include everyone and make them feel seen and appreciated is unmatched.”
Before the sentencing, District Judge Juan Hoyos stated that there was nothing he could say to alleviate anyone’s suffering.
“What I’ve heard today described by the victims, the damage that was caused, the pain that was caused, the loss of life, it’s just unimaginable,” he went on. “I’ve never heard anything like that in a courtroom and that pain and that loss is just gonna remain forever.”
