Inset left: Rolando Odir Miranda Martinez (Dakota County Jail). Inset right: Leslie Anne Youngberg (Obituary). Background: The intersection where Miranda Martinez killed Youngberg with his Honda CR-V in Eagan, Minn. (Google Maps).
A Minnesota man convicted in a fatal hit-and-run will not serve prison time for the crash that killed a pedestrian in Eagan earlier this year.
Rolando Odir Miranda Martinez, 59, pleaded guilty in April to one count of leaving the scene of a collision resulting in death in connection with the death of 40-year-old Leslie Anne Youngberg.
On Thursday, a judge sentenced Miranda Martinez to 180 days in jail. According to Dakota County Jail records, he will receive credit for 97 days already served while awaiting trial, significantly reducing the time he has left to spend behind bars.
Prosecutors said Miranda Martinez was driving a Honda CR-V when he struck Youngberg during the early morning hours of March 7. The crash happened near the intersection of Cliff Road and Nichols Road in Eagan, a suburb in the Twin Cities metropolitan area, according to the criminal complaint cited by KSTP.
Authorities said Youngberg was walking near the area at about 2 a.m. when she was hit. Investigators say the driver left the scene after the collision.
First responders found Youngberg unresponsive. She was taken to a nearby hospital, where she was pronounced dead.
A witness walking with Youngberg said the car never stopped.
The witness said he and Youngberg were traveling north on Nichols and crossing Cliff at the time, according to law enforcement cited in an earlier KSTP report. Youngberg was walking about 20 feet ahead and the car was traveling east, the witness told investigators.
Law enforcement used a combination of car parts left at the scene of the hit-and-run as well as surveillance footage to find the white CR-V with heavy front-end damage, according to the charging document.
Police found Miranda Martinez and the damaged SUV at the defendant’s residence around 11:15 a.m. that same day. But while officers were waiting for backup, Miranda Martinez got into an Uber.
The defendant was arrested without incident when police pulled the rideshare vehicle over a short time later.
While in the back of a squad car, the defendant made comments about a person in the road, police said. During his formal interview with detectives, Miranda Martinez said he had been at a bar in Minneapolis the prior night and was heading home — but he denied drinking.
The defendant said he recalled a “thing” jumping out onto the road in front of him and breaking his windshield, police said. Miranda Martinez explained that he continued home because he was scared.
The victim was remembered fondly in a GoFundMe for funeral expenses.
“She was a devoted single parent to her 16-year-old son, and her world revolved around caring for him and supporting others,” the online fundraiser reads. “Her gentle spirit shone through in her work with small children at a local daycare, where she made a lasting impact on countless young lives. Her love for animals and her nurturing nature touched everyone she met, and her absence is felt deeply by her family, friends, and the community.”
