Vehicular Manslaughter Convict Charged with Drunken Driving

Prosecutors on Tuesday filed a drunken driving charge against a Hopkins man previously convicted of killing another man in a 2003 drunken driving incident.

encountered Steven Allen Ableman Jr., 28, at 1:52 a.m. while patrolling near the intersection of First Street North and 10th Avenue North, according to charging documents written by Officer Kevin Frederick.

Officers noticed Ableman driving without headlights and stopped him. The officer noted that he pulled over but continued rolling forward.

After failing several field sobriety tests, he took a preliminary breath test that registered .192 percent—or more than twice the legal limit of .08 percent. Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension analysis of a blood sample found the level to be .17 percent.

Ableman was involved in a crash in January 2003 in which a Naytahwaush man died after the then-19-year-old Ableman lost control of his pickup while driving on icy roads, according to The Forum of Fargo-Moorhead.

In August 2003, he was convicted of criminal vehicular manslaughter for causing the death of someone else while driving with a blood alcohol level of .08 percent or more, according to court records and the charging documents.

Ableman has been charged with first-degree driving while impaired, which carries a penalty of three to seven years in prison and/or a fine of $4,200 to $14,000.