Franklin, Minnesota, man sentenced to 51 months in prison for fourth drunken driving conviction

Dale Morin, West Central Tribune, Willmar, Minn.
·2 min read

Feb. 1—GRANITE FALLS

— A 28-year-old man from

Franklin

was sentenced to 51 months in prison for impaired driving in the first degree.

Khristian Apollo Kezena was sentenced Dec. 12 in Yellow Medicine County District Court after earlier pleading guilty to the single felony.

In exchange for his plea, a second felony charge of driving while impaired, a gross misdemeanor for driving after cancellation, and misdemeanor possession of hypodermic needles were dismissed.

Judge Keith Helgeson gave Kezena credit for 103 days already served. According to the sentencing order, Kezena will also be placed on five years of conditional release after his confinement.

Under Minnesota law, offenders are required to serve at least two-thirds of a sentence in custody and may be allowed to serve the remaining time on supervised release.

Kezena is expected to be released from Minnesota Correctional Facility in St. Cloud on June 30, 2025, according to the

Minnesota Department of Corrections

.

According to the criminal complaint, a Granite Falls police officer performed a traffic stop on Kezena for a broken tail light along Minnesota Highway 23 at 1:45 a.m. in late May.

The officer noticed Kezena appeared to be jittery, and Kezena said he was nervous because he did not have a driver's license. Kezena and a passenger with him provided the officer with Minnesota identification cards.

The officer arrested Kezena for driving after cancellation after a review of his identification confirmed his driver's license was canceled.

Kezena told the officer he would find two needles under the driver seat and that he had used methamphetamine that morning, according to the complaint. A search of the vehicle yielded two hypodermic needles.

Kezena was transported to the Yellow Medicine County Jail, where he was booked and asked to perform field sobriety tests. The arresting officer determined that Kezena was under the influence of a controlled substance.

A blood sample analysis later confirmed the presence of amphetamine and methamphetamine.

According to the complaint, Kezena's criminal history includes three previous DWI convictions in Minnesota in the past 10 years: Two from Renville County in 2017 and 2019, and another from Redwood County in August 2021.