North Mankato Man Pleads Admits to Assaulting Trooper During Byron Traffic Stop

Rochester, MN (KROC-AM News)- A southern Minnesota man accused of assaulting a state trooper during a traffic stop in Olmsted County has entered a plea agreement. 

See Also: Rochester Man Sentenced for Coerced ATM Withdrawals 

The criminal complaint says the arrest occurred in April of 2023 near the eastern Kwik Trip store in Byron.

The trooper initiated a traffic stop after seeing a vehicle leaving the convenience store that had a red and blue light bar near the top of the windshield that lit up when the vehicle was in motion, the complaint says. 

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North Mankato Man Pleads Guilty in Case Involving Officer Assault, Drug Bust & DWI

The trooper approached the vehicle and instructed the driver, identified as 28-year-old Cory Lynn Spiess, to exit the vehicle after seeing signs of drug use inside of the vehicle. 

The trooper then put the North Mankato man through field sobriety tests and determined he was under the influence of a controlled substance. The trooper informed Spiess he was under arrest on suspicion of DUI, the complaint says. 

Spiess then refused the trooper’s commands, spun out of the trooper’s grasp and assumed a fighting stance. The charges say an Olmsted County Sheriff’s Deputy who had responded to the scene during the sobriety testing, advised the trooper that Spiess had a gun in the vehicle. 

The trooper and deputy were able to get a hold of Spiess, who struggled and continued to resist commands, the charges say. During the struggle, Spiess struck the trooper with several kicks. The trooper deployed his taser three times during the altercation. 

The trooper and deputy were able to get handcuffs on Spiess after the third taser deployment.

Once he was in handcuffs, Spiess then thwarted an attempted search of his person by kicking the trooper and using his fingernails to cut then eventually bruise the trooper’s thumb, the court document says. 

The deputy and trooper eventually wrestled Spiess into the squad car, which he also accused of damaging during the arrest. A subsequent search of Spiess’s vehicle indicated the gun spotted by the deputy was a BB gun pistol, the complaint says. 

Law enforcement also found 9.5 grams of suspected meth, 0.7 grams of a powder that tested positive for heroin, along with marijuana wax, marijuana, a scale, grinder and other drug paraphernalia, according to the charges.

Spiess was charged with two counts of felony fourth-degree assault of a peace officer, two counts of felony fifth-degree drug possession, misdemeanor DWI and misdemeanor damage to property. 

He recently entered a plea agreement that calls for him to plead guilty to one of the officer assault counts and the misdemeanor DWI charge in exchange for the dismissal of the other charges. 

The plea agreement also calls for a stayed prison sentence for the officer assault charge and for Spiess to pay restitution for all counts he was charged with. The stayed prison sentence is contingent on the case staying local, according to the court document. 

Spiess is scheduled to be sentenced in February.