A Hennepin County judge found a Brooklyn Park man not guilty by reason of mental illness in a deadly 2021 hit-and-run killing and a separate 2020 carjacking case.
According to a court order signed on Tuesday, a Hennepin County judge ruled the state proved all charges against Christopher Dewayne Rice beyond a reasonable doubt. The order says Rice was found not guilty by reason of mental illness in both cases and that his current civil commitment must continue.
The court order says Rice admitted to police he hit 65-year-old Paul Pfeifer with a black Chevrolet Traverse on June 12, 2021, near Scott Circle North in Brooklyn Park and drove away without checking on him. Pfeifer was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead…