Ely man pleads guilty in crash that injured woman

Aug. 22--An Ely man pleaded guilty Wednesday to two felonies stemming from an April drunken-driving crash that left a passenger seriously injured.

As part of a plea agreement, August Arthur Sandberg, 40, pleaded guilty in State District Court in Virginia to one count of criminal vehicular operation resulting in substantial bodily harm and one count of motor vehicle theft.

Early on the morning of April 3, Sandberg crashed his 2010 Chevrolet Silverado in the parking lot of Samz Place, 1225 Winton Road, before abandoning three passengers while he walked to a residence and stole another car, according to court documents.

The three female passengers would not say who was driving, other than that it was a male. Deputies used vehicle registration and insurance documents to trace the vehicle back to Sandberg.

One of the passengers, identified as Patricia Lemke, was in and out of consciousness as authorities responded to the scene shortly after 2:20 a.m., according to a criminal complaint. Lemke was later flown to a Duluth hospital.

Sandberg, meanwhile, left the scene on foot, walking about 3 miles to a residence, where he took a set of keys to a 2014 Ford SRW.

The truck was discovered a short time later outside Sandberg's apartment in Ely, and he was arrested.

Sixth District Judge Robert Friday set a sentencing date of Sept. 16.

___

(c)2019 the Duluth News Tribune (Duluth, Minn.)

Visit the Duluth News Tribune (Duluth, Minn.) at www.duluthnewstribune.com

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.