A former Minneapolis police officer was sentenced to about nine months in jail Wednesday for a crash that killed an innocent driver while the officer was chasing a stolen vehicle, authorities said.
The former officer, Brian Cummings, was sentenced to 270 days in county jail after pleading guilty to criminal vehicular manslaughter, the Hennepin County District Attorney’s Office said.
Cummings was in pursuit of a stolen vehicle early on July 6, 2021, and the officer ran a red light before crashing into an uninvolved Jeep, killing 40-year-old Leneal Frazier, the prosecutor’s office said.
“Today’s sentencing sends an important message that everyone in our county will be held accountable for their actions when they break the law,” said Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty. said in a statement.
Cummings was charged in October 2021 with second-degree manslaughter and criminal vehicular manslaughter.
Leneal’s brother, Richard Frazier, asked the court for jail time at Wednesday’s sentencing. Minneapolis NBC affiliate KARE reported.
“We are asking please send him to jail. It’s not a long time, but it’s something,” she said.
Cummings was chasing a suspect in an armed robbery and carjacking when the accident occurred, according to police documents.
Cummings had his lights and siren on during the chase, which began around 12:30 a.m. and lasted about 20 blocks, according to a criminal complaint.
The officer was traveling at about 90 mph just before running a red light. At the time he struck Frazier’s Jeep, his speed was 78 mph, the complaint says. Frazier had a green light at the intersection.
Cummings pleaded guilty to criminal vehicular manslaughter in April.
He apologized to the Frazier family in court on Wednesday.
“I would like to take this moment to acknowledge the great pain and suffering that the Frazier family is experiencing, and I would also like to offer my sincere apologies,” he said, according to a KARE video.
