Man charged with vehicular homicide in St. Paul had 9 prior felony convictions

A man who is believed to have crashed a stolen car and killed his passenger while fleeing police has nine previous felony convictions.

According to court documents, 32-year-old Dylan John Smith faces one count of fleeing an officer resulting in death or bodily injury, one count of criminal vehicular homicide, and one count of theft for taking a vehicle without consent. He faces a maximum of 55 years in prison if found guilty on all charges.

According to the document, the incident began in Roseville on Friday around 7:37 p.m. when a Toyota Camry bearing stolen license plates was reportedly spotted at a Cub Foods parking lot.

Police waited to see if someone would return to the car, which Smith reportedly did, carrying groceries to the car and getting inside.

Smith drove off and police tried to pull him over. He sped off after this, with court documents stating the Camry got up to 90 miles per hour and even drove into oncoming traffic.

The chase ended in St. Paul after Smith reportedly drove over a roundabout at Edmund Avenue and Griggs Street, lost control, and crashed into a tree.

Smith was seen by officers walking from the vehicle and into the street and was arrested. A passenger of the Camry was spotted slumped over in the front passenger seat with a faint pulse and struggling to breathe.

The passenger, identified by police as a woman, was pronounced dead after arriving at the hospital.

Smith later told police that neither he nor the woman had been driving, but instead, a person called “Smiles” was. When asked how Smith knew “Smiles,” he was reportedly unable to answer police, and a third person was not seen on security video of the chase or by eyewitnesses.

Smith has nine prior felony convictions: two motor vehicle thefts, two for fleeing police in a motor vehicle, receiving stolen property, burglary in the first degree, five counts of violating a controlled substance law and two thefts.