A central Minnesota man has been charged with D-W-I after two nine-year-old boys were injured in a Saturday watercraft accident on a lake near St. Joseph (MN).
Authorities say 42-year-old Ryan Willis of St. Joseph was driving a jet ski that was pulling a tube ridden by the boys. Willis told investigators he got too close to the shore, and the tube hit a dock.
The criminal complaint says one boy suffered serious injuries including a skull fracture, a bruised lung and a head laceration. He was airlifted to a Twin Cities hospital. The other boy was taken to a St. Cloud Hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
Stearns County Sheriff’s deputies say Willis showed signs of impairment before admitting he had been drinking. A preliminary breath test showed his blood alcohol level was point-1-4-8. (The legal limit is point-zero-eight.)
Willis was also charged with two counts of criminal vehicular operation causing great bodily harm. His next court appearance is set for September 1st.