Chatfield Man Charged in 2022 Motorcycle Crash That Killed Rochester Man

Rochester, MN (KROC-AM News)- A Chatfield Man is now facing homicide-related charges in connection to a car versus motorcycle crash that claimed the life of a Rochester man last September. 

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The State Patrol’s preliminary crash investigation indicates a southbound motorcycle collided with a car attempting to make a left turn from the northbound lane of Hwy. 52 about a mile north of Chatfield on the night of September 10. The motorcyclist, identified as 36-year-old Rick Hutton of Rochester, was not wearing a helmet and was pronounced dead at the scene, the report says. 

On Wednesday the Olmsted County Attorney’s Office filed charges against 58-year-old Nicholas Sprau. The initial state crash report indicated he had alcohol in his system and court documents say a blood test measured his blood-alcohol concentration at 0.173, which is more than two times over the legal limit. 

The complaint lays out the results of the State Patrol’s reconstruction of the deadly collision and found the car driven by Sprau was making a left turn into the driveway of his rural Chatfield home. The charges say he and his wife, who was riding in the passenger seat, both saw the motorcycle coming but thought they had enough time to make it into the driveway. 

The motorcycle was calculated to have been traveling at 39 mph when it hit the passenger side of the car.  A lengthy skid mark on the two-lane highway indicated the motorcycle was traveling between 58 and 59 mph when Hutton began to brake for the turning vehicle, the complaint says. 

Sprau and his wife were not hurt in the crash. The accident reconstruction determined that Sprau failed to yield to oncoming traffic. A driver who came upon the crash scene spoke with Sprau, who told the driver he is in trouble, the complaint says. 

Sprau is facing three counts of charges relating to criminal vehicular homicide as well as a gross-misdemeanor DWI charge and a misdemeanor DWI charge. He’s due to make his first appearance on the charges on August 31.