Firefighter enters guilty plea in accident that killed two firefighters

ANOKA, MN. — A Baraga man who crashed a van that killed two firefighters last year in Minnesota has pleaded guilty to three charges.

Micheal Allen Johnson, 29, pleaded guilty to two counts of criminal vehicular homicide and another count of criminal vehicular operation causing great bodily harm. Johnson’s toxicology report showed he had traces of cocaine in his system at the time of the crash.

On August 27th, 2016, Johnson was driving a Beartown Fire Department bus when he struck a median on I-35 in Blaine, MN. The fire department from the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community was on their way to fight wildfires in the western U.S. when the crash occurred.

Alan Schwartz, 25, and James Shelifoe Jr., 23, were killed in that accident. Six other people on the bus were injured.

According to the plea agreement, Johnson faces a maximum penalty of 10-years in prison. He will be sentenced November 9th in Anoka County District Court.