Charges filed against man in death of 16-year-old skateboarder

A man has been charged in connection to the death of a teenager who was struck and killed by a vehicle while skateboarding in north Minneapolis on Tuesday.

Court documents show that 34-year-old Bobby Frank Brookins is charged with two counts of criminal vehicular operation.

Minneapolis police were called to the intersection of 51st Avenue North and Fremont Avenue North at about 8:37 p.m. Tuesday. There, officers found a 16-year-old — who was later identified by a family member as Dychaun Lavonte Chew — lying on the ground in the intersection, with several people attempting CPR on him. Chew was immediately taken to a hospital, but was pronounced dead.

A criminal complaint states officers noted several parked vehicles had severe damage and a suspect vehicle, a silver Chevrolet Traverse, was on the front lawn of a home on the corner of 52nd Avenue North and Fremont Avenue North. Officers learned the Traverse was traveling at a high rate of speed and failed to stop at the intersection for a stop sign. At that time, the Traverse hit Chew, who was crossing the intersection on his skateboard, and the Traverse continued north and struck several parked cars, losing a wheel in the process.

Officers identified the driver of the Traverse as Brookins and took him into custody. The complaint states Brookins was visibly intoxicated and smelled of alcohol. Officers administered a preliminary breath test, which showed Brookins’s blood-alcohol content was .16 — twice the legal limit in Minnesota. Police said Brookins then admitted that he was driving the Traverse and hit Chew.

Witnesses confirmed what happened to officers and said Brookins got out of the Traverse and ran after coming to a stop on the front lawn of a home. However, he later returned and collected personal items, and allegedly admitted to witnesses that he hit Chew, the complaint states.

Several residential homes also had security cameras that captured the incident, the complaint states.

Additionally, the black box from the Traverse indicated Brookins was traveling 55 mph when his airbags were deployed, and he was accelerating at the time of the accident instead of braking.

The complaint notes Brookins was convicted of gross misdemeanor DWI in 2019.

Brookins made his first court appearance Friday and had his bail set at $200,000 without conditions or $125,000 with conditions. His next court hearing is set for July 16.