MINNEAPOLIS — A young man agreed to a plea deal that will result in a prison sentence of nearly 14 years after he fled from police, struck a vehicle and killed a woman.
The Hennepin County Attorney's Office says 21-year-old Quintin Leon Hudson admitted his guilt on one count of fleeing a police officer resulting in death, and on one of fleeing police resulting in great bodily harm. In return for his pleas, Hudson will be sentenced to 165 months in prison or 13.75 years.
Court documents say Hudson was fleeing police in Robbinsdale on the evening of July 8, 2024, when he crashed into a vehicle carrying Emily and John Gerding at nearly 100 mph. Emily, a 34-year-old mother of two, was killed and John was badly injured. Records check showed Hudson didn't have a valid driver's license, only an operator's permit.
At the time of the crash, law enforcement said there was reason to believe Hudson was under the influence of a controlled substance.
The Gerdings both worked as special education teachers in the Anoka-Hennepin School District and were preparing to celebrate their seventh wedding anniversary that August.
“Emily should still be alive,” Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty said. “Mr. Hudson’s actions took her from our community, devastated her family, and left her husband, John, with life-threatening injuries. This resolution holds Mr. Hudson accountable and is necessary to protect our community.”
Hudson will be officially sentenced in a hearing currently set for Dec. 12.