Itasca County DFL organizer charged with criminal vehicular manslaughter

GRAND RAPIDS — A Northern Minnesota political organizer was charged with criminal vehicular manslaughter in Itasca County Court Tuesday, Nov. 19.

Cynthia Martin, 64, of Grand Rapids allegedly hit Carter Haithcock, 19, of Goodland on Highway 169 near Nashwauk on July 3 and then fled the scene, according to court filings and a Minnesota State Patrol report.

The felony charge carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison, a $20,000 fine or both.

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Martin is the chair of the 8th Congressional District DFL and vice chair of the Itasca County DFL, according to their websites.

Law enforcement responded to a report of a person lying in the road just before midnight on July 3, according to the criminal complaint. While the reporting party was on the phone with dispatch, another vehicle ran over the person in the road.

Based on the debris field and lack of damage to the vehicle, officers believed another vehicle had struck Haithcock previously.

Haithcock had extensive injuries and was pronounced dead shortly after EMTs arrived. The criminal complaint stated he spent the evening at the Nashwauk street dance then decided to walk home after an argument with a former romantic partner. Toxicology showed alcohol and THC in his system.

According to the complaint, Martin called 911 just before 6 a.m. July 4 to report she "may have been involved in the accident near Nashwauk." She told law enforcement she’d spent the day at East Range parades, stopped for dinner in Mountain Iron and then drove home.

Martin allegedly told law enforcement she thought she had struck an owl or turkey and did not stop.

The complaint says Martin’s blood test showed negative results for all tested substances, and footage from the restaurant in Mountain Iron shows she did not drink. Footage also showed no visible damage to her vehicle at the time.

Another witness called law enforcement on July 8 and said he’d seen an individual wearing dark clothing walking in the road around the time of the accident and that he had nearly hit the individual.

Martin was on the phone with someone identified as J.F. at the time of the crash, according to the complaint. According to J.F.'s statement, Martin said she hit something, and he told her to call 911. She then called him back and said nothing was wrong with her vehicle and something only hit her windshield, so she didn’t report it.

Surveillance footage from the Nashwauk Sinclair shows a vehicle with a single headlight briefly stopping near the crash site just before the body was reported, according to the complaint.

Footage shows Martin’s vehicle entering Grand Rapids with one working headlight about 20 minutes later. Law enforcement’s inspection of her vehicle noted extensive damage to its front, a piece of fabric consistent with the sweatshirt worn by Haithcock caught in the hood and blood on the passenger side windshield wiper and mirror.

The complaint says crash data from Martin’s vehicle shows her driving below the speed limit and then hitting her brakes just before the crash.

Martin is scheduled to appear before Judge Heidi M. Chandler on Dec. 26.