The man charged with killing two people and injuring a dozen others after drunkenly crashing into a crowded patio in St. Louis Park last year entered a plea deal on Wednesday. Steven Frane Bailey, 56, previously pleaded not guilty to charges of third-degree murder, criminal vehicular homicide and criminal operation in connection with the Sept. 1 crash into Park Tavern that killed server Kristina Folkerts and Methodist Hospital ICE coordinator Gabe Harvey . On Wednesday, he amended his plea to guilty for both third-degree murder counts and three counts of criminal vehicular operation resulting in great bodily harm. As part of the plea, he faces a penalty of 25 to 30 years in prison. A criminal complaint alleges Bailey’s blood alcohol content was 0.335 — more than four times the legal limit — when he drove a BMW X5 through a metal fence and plowed through the length of the packed patio, only coming to a stop after hitting rocks and a slope on the opposite end. When officers explained to Bailey at the hospital that he was being charged with criminal vehicular homicide, he responded, “My life’s pretty much f—ed now, isn’t it?” Court records show Bailey had five previous DWI convictions, a factor that prompted St. Louis Park lawmakers to sponsor legislation to reform Minnesota’s DWI penalties this session. At Wednesday’s plea hearing, Judge Juan Hoyos granted Bailey conditional release pending his sentencing on July 28.
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