Man Who Drove Into SE Rochester Home Sentenced to Prison
Rochester, MN (KROC-AM News) - An Austin man with a history of multiple drunk driving offenses was sentenced yesterday to more than 6-years in prison for driving while intoxicated and crashing into a Rochester home last year.
49-year-old Marcus Antwan Martin earlier entered a guilty plea to a felony DWI charge through a plea deal that led to the dismissal of another felony DWI charge and a misdemeanor count of driving with a canceled license. It was his fourth felony DWI conviction and his 7th overall DWI conviction since 2014.
According to the criminal complaint, a Rochester Police Officer responded to a report of a traffic crash on the night of May 6, 2021, and found Martin standing outside a car that had crashed through a chain-link fence and into a house at 609 14 1/2 Street Southeast. The officer indicated "the vehicle had pushed completely through the wall of the home and the vehicle came to rest, with the front end protruding into the lower level of the home."
Martin's son told police that he and his father had just gotten into a physical altercation at their nearby home. The son indicated that after he walked away from the residence, Martin followed in his car and the pair began arguing again. The son told the investigator that his father then drove away and he watched as Martin crashed into the house.
The charges stated the officer noticed signs of intoxication in Martin and conducted a preliminary breath test, which put his blood-alcohol-concentration at .13. The court document says a test of a blood sample later taken from Martin at St. Marys Hospital put his blood-alcohol-concentration at .16, which is double the legal limit.
