Background: The aftermath of the crash on I-35 in the area of Faribault, Minnesota (KCCI/YouTube). Inset: Matthew and Cimberly Hansen (McLaren's Resthaven Chapel & Mortuary & Resthaven Cemetery).
A truck driver has admitted fault after authorities said he was watching Netflix when he crashed into a couple on a Minnesota interstate, killing them.
Billie Joe Grimes, 57, has pleaded guilty to two counts of criminal vehicular homicide in the deaths of 57-year-old Matthew Henry Hansen and 56-year-old Cimberly Ellen Hansen, according to Rice County court records reviewed by Law&Crime. The defendant also pleaded guilty to criminal vehicular operation causing bodily harm.
He is due to be sentenced on March 16, 2027.
In the summer of 2023, a roadway construction project was underway on Interstate 35 in the area of Faribault, Minnesota, a city some 50 miles south of Minneapolis. The roadwork required the closing of one lane in each direction, and warning signs had been placed nearby, court documents state.
At about 1:30 p.m. on Aug. 25, 2023, Grimes was driving a 2021 Volvo semitruck on the interstate. He had been working as a commercial truck driver for five years, and, according to the Rice County Attorney's Office, as he drove in the construction zone, he was watching a show on Netflix on his phone.
In front of Grimes was the couple, driving a red 2019 Toyota Camry. The Iowa couple was "traveling to visit family in Minnesota," their obituary states.
In front of them was a Chevy Silverado driver with a trailer attached to the vehicle. Authorities noted that the day was both "clear" and "sunny."
As the Hansens and the other driver merged into one lane because of the construction and traveled between 10 and 15 mph, Grimes was still going about 65 mph on "cruise control," the court documents add. Suddenly, he smashed into the back of both vehicles.
The Hansens' Camry was crushed and sent into a ditch, while the semitruck and Chevrolet pickup went through a barbed wire fence.
Witnesses tried to help the Hansens from their vehicle, but Cimberly Hansen was reportedly already dead. The witnesses said Matthew Hansen initially had a pulse, but it was gone minutes later. He was also pronounced dead.
The driver of the pickup had "minor injuries including a bump on his head and pain in his shoulders."
State troopers responded to the crash site and spoke with Grimes. He said he "looked down just prior to the crash" and "when he looked up the car was right in front of him," adding that he couldn't stop "because of the heavy load he was hauling."
He apparently denied using his phone, though his truck's "dash cameras would tell a different story."
Grimes had passed five signs — two with flashing lights — "that warned of upcoming road construction," per the attorney's office. Furthermore, the "dash cam helped establish Grimes was streaming a Netflix show on his phone as the crash happened."
Investigators reportedly found "no evidence Grimes used his brakes before making impact with the victims' vehicles." He was eventually arrested and charged, and he initially pleaded not guilty.
The Hansens' obituary says they "built their lives in the Des Moines area" of Iowa and "took their kids on annual camping trips from the Grand Canyon to Niagara Falls and everywhere in between. Later life would bless them with grandchildren, and they would frequently be on the road visiting one of their four children or cruising around the world."
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