MINNEAPOLIS (Court TV) — A teenager who pleaded guilty to causing a crash that killed a middle schooler was sentenced to 44 months behind bars.
Conner Iversen sits in court during his sentencing on April 15, 2026. (Court TV)
Connor Iversen, 19, pleaded guilty to a single charge of criminal vehicular homicide for the crash on Feb. 26, 2025. “I took this prison sentence to prevent any more pain on the family, or any more court dates or a trial that would have caused any more pain, as well as owning up to what happened,” Iversen said in a brief address to the court at Wednesday’s sentencing.
Investigators said that Iversen was driving a 2007 GMC Sierra at 63 mph in a 50 mph zone when he blew through a stop sign and crashed into a GMC Acadia SUV carrying a family en route to school dropoff. Detectives later determined that Iversen had been on his phone in the moments before the crash.
“Throughout my 21 years of service, I responded to numerous tragic accidents, but none felt like what I experienced that day,” Officer Jonathan Howes said in court. “The scene felt surreal; felt like something out of a movie. I’d never witnessed such chaos and such sheer fear in people. I can still hear Lily’s father, Eric, yelling at me to help his daughter.” Howes, one of the responding officers to the crash from the West Hennepin Public Safety Department, said that his law enforcement career was effectively ended by the PTSD caused by his response to that crash. “[The victims] were staggering through a debris field,” Howes said of his arrival at the scene. “I’ve been present at a lot of child death scenes throughout my career, but nothing has affected me more than this. After finishing my shift that day, I went home, I held my daughters, and just cried.”
The Loycano family’s vehicle is seen in a video shown at Conner Iversen’s sentencing. (Loycano family)
Lily’s family spoke at the sentencing and expressed their dissatisfaction with the 44-month sentence included in the defendant’s plea agreement. “Forty-four months isn’t justice for a defendant who has shown no remorse,” Lily’s uncle said. “The defendant, who in police reports is bragging to his friends about getting away with killing an 11-year-old, who by all accounts shouldn’t have been driving.” At that point, there was an outburst in court as Iversen yelled, “That never happened! He’s lying on my name!” Judge Shereen Askalani ordered the defendant to remain quiet.
But Iversen yelled out again in protest while Lily’s grandmother spoke. “This was not an accident,” she said. “Accidents are unavoidable. This was a series of conscious choices. He chose to be on Snapchat while driving. He chose to speed. He chose to drive erratically. He chose to blow through a four-way stop. He chose to ignore the safety of every other family on that road. Those were not mistakes. They were decisions – repeated, reckless, indifferent decisions.”
“The choices did not stop at the collision. Audacity steps in. After killing my granddaughter, he bragged about it. He referred to her as ‘that girl,’ the grandmother continued. “He bragged about throwing drugs out at the scene. He bragged about getting away with it. All verified by witnesses and crash reconstruction. Remorse is not measured by words spoken after charges are filed; it is revealed in conduct. His conduct tells this court everything. This was not an isolated lapse in judgment.” Iversen interrupted her at the end of her statement, yelling, “It’s a lie!”
Lilyana Loycano is seen in a photo shown to the court. (Loycano family)
Lily’s parents remembered their daughter as a “sweet, radiant soul” who had dreams of growing up to be a teacher, gymnastics coach, marine biologist, and orthopedic surgeon. “In a single moment, because of choices the defendant made, everything was taken,” Lily’s mother said. “He didn’t just take Lily’s life. He took her future. He took her first boyfriend, her first dance, her first kiss. He took her chance to drive, to graduate, to chase her dreams. He took her wedding day. Her father will never walk her down the aisle, and I will never get to see my daughter become a mother.”
Iversen’s attorney, Laura Baldwin, defended the agreed-upon sentence, saying that “nascent mental health issues” contributed to the series of events that culminated in the deadly crash.
“I apologize and offer my deepest condolences to the family,” Iversen said at the hearing. “I’m sorry for this unfortunate accident that should never have happened. I know that words can’t do any justice. However, I want the family to know that right after the accident, I prayed to Jesus that everyone would be OK.”
Askalani sentenced Iversen to 44 months, at least two-thirds of which must be served behind bars. He was given credit for the 409 days he has already served.
