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MPR News Staff
St. Paul

Charges: Wrong-way driver drunk when he killed 911 dispatcher

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A Blaine man was charged with three counts of criminal vehicular homicide for a Minnesota Highway 252 crash that killed a Minneapolis emergency dispatcher who was on her way to work.

Richard Shaka, 72, allegedly drove under the influence of alcohol; a blood test at the hospital revealed his blood-alcohol content was twice the legal limit for driving, the Hennepin County Attorney's Office said Friday.

According to the criminal complaint, Shaka was driving his Toyota Sequoia SUV north in the southbound lane of Minnesota Highway 252 about 8 p.m. on Feb. 17 when he crashed into a Hyundai Elantra appropriately driving south near Brookdale Boulevard.

That car was driven by 30-year-old Jenna Bixby, a Minneapolis 911 emergency dispatcher from Nowthen. Bixby was dead at the scene. She was a communications training officer who coached and developed new employees.

No first court appearance has been set because Shaka remains in the hospital, the county attorney's office said.