Derrick Thompson appears in court on charges of killing 5 people in reckless crash

Sitting in a wheelchair and wearing an orange jumpsuit, Derrick Thompson made his first court appearance in Hennepin County on Friday afternoon on charges alleging he ran a red light while speeding 40 mph over the limit and killed five young women when he struck their sedan a week ago.

In the short hearing in a courtroom inside the Hennepin County jail, where Thompson is incarcerated, Judge Carolina Lamas upheld the Brooklyn Park man's $1 million bail and reserved arguments on release for a future appearance. The judge also scheduled his next court date for July 21 at 10 a.m.

Thompson did not speak other than to answer yes-or-no questions from the court.

Thompson, the 27-year-old son of former DFL Rep. John Thompson, was charged by the Hennepin County Attorney's Office Thursday with 10 felony counts — two for each victim — of vehicular manslaughter. He faces additional federal charges for illegal possession of a gun and intent to sell fentanyl, a deadly synthetic opioid.

Killed in the hit-and-run were Sabiriin Ali, 17, of Bloomington; Sahra Gesaade, 20, of Brooklyn Center; Salma Abdikadir, 20, of St. Louis Park; Sagal Hersi, 19, of Minneapolis; and Siham Adam, 19, of Minneapolis. They were running errands together for a friend's Saturday wedding. Their joint funeral Monday was attended by thousands.

According to the charges:

Thompson rented an Escalade around 9:45 the night of June 16 from Hertz at the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport. At 10:09, a State Trooper on I-35W clocked Thompson's speed at 95 mph and started following him with no lights or sirens on. Thompson did not slow down as he exited onto East Lake Street, hurtled through a red light and broadsided a black Honda Civic.

When the trooper got to the accident site, he found no signs of life from any of the people inside the Civic, and paramedics pronounced all five dead at the scene. The Escalade was empty.

Based on tips from two witnesses, police tracked Thompson to a nearby Taco Bell, where they found him sitting on a curb covered in sweat and blood. "I cut myself. This is old," he told the officers, and later said that he "fell." He was hospitalized for a broken hip before he was taken to jail.

A search of his vehicle turned up a loaded handgun, 250 grams of narcotics that tested positive for fentanyl, more than 35 grams of cocaine and thirteen pills of MDMA, also known as ecstasy.

He pleaded guilty in 2020 to a hit-and-run in California that left a tourist in a coma for weeks and with permanent injuries. Prosecutors wanted a longer sentence, but Thompson received eight years.

In that incident, officers had tried stopping him for reckless driving. A pursuit in daylight along a crowded beach road in Montecito, Calif., in September 2018 ended after he struck the pedestrian. In the vehicle, officers found 17 pounds of marijuana and more than $20,000.

Thompson was released early from prison on Jan. 19, 2023.

Once out of prison, Thompson took several steps toward having his Minnesota driver's license reinstated. State records show he paid various fees and fines in early March and took a knowledge exam.

On March 11, he was notified that his driving privileges would be reinstated once he met requirements in one state where his privileges were invalid, according to state Department of Vehicle Services spokesman Oliver Schuster.

On June 7 — nine days before the crash — Thompson got his Minnesota license after national databases showed valid driving privileges in all states. Having that valid license allowed him to rent the SUV in Minnesota.

Star Tribune staff writers Kim Hyatt and Paul Walsh contributed to this report.