Sentencing

I'll be thinking of my good friend Jimmy as they sentence the drunk driver who killed his sister in law and severely injured his brother in a New Years eve crash last year.

On her last night alive, Margaret Lopez sat next to her husband of more than 20 years in his Ramsey County Sheriff's squad car and listened as music from the radio synced to the blinking of thousands of Christmas lights outside a Shoreview home.

"Maggie had the biggest smile on her face, and an hour later she was gone," said Deputy Kristi Pavek, who worked with Lopez's husband, Joseph, for 18 years.

Shortly after 3:30 a.m., as Lopez drove west on Hwy. 10 in Arden Hills, a 23-year-old woman driving the wrong way collided head-on with Lopez's squad car.

Beth Rhodes will be sentenced today. My heart and prayers are with the Lopez family as they find closure during this difficult time.

Flash