On March 26, 2026, at approximately 9:12 P.M., Deputy Stracek from the Carlton County Sheriff's Office was on routine patrol of County Road 10 within the County of Carlton, Minnesota when he observed a black Chevrolet Impala traveling in the area. Upon running a routine query of the license plate, Deputy Stracek found that the vehicle was flagged as the owner having a driving status that was revoked. The query also showed that the vehicle's license plate was not presently valid and supposed to be impounded.
Deputy Stracek then conducted a U-turn in order to conduct a traffic stop on the vehicle, but noticed that it had suddenly turned off the road onto Maple Leaf Lane. Deputy Stracek observed dirt marks on the road caused by what appeared to be a vehicle abruptly turning off the road at a high rate of speed. Upon following the tracks of the vehicle, Deputy Stracek found the black Impala parked in the driveway of a residence on Ridgewood Drive with a single occupant seated in the driver's seat. Deputy Stracek then initiated a traffic stop of the vehicle and approached on foot.
Upon doing so, he observed the occupant appear to be attempting to conceal something next to him. Deputy Stracek then made contact with the occupant, identified as TANNER COLE HALVERSON, [DOB REDACTED] (hereinafter DEFENDANT). Upon Deputy Stracek's request for DEFENDANT's driver's license, DEFENDANT provided a debit card. When Deputy Stracek pointed that out, DEFENDANT then apologized and provided his identification. As Deputy Stracek continued to speak with DEFENDANT, he observed several signs of impairment, including glossy, bloodshot eyes, poor coordination, and the odor of alcoholic beverage coming from DEFENDANT's person.
DEFENDANT then told Deputy Stracek that he had consumed one shot of Crown Royal earlier that evening while in his car after getting off of work. Deputy Stracek then asked DEFENDANT whether there was alcohol in the car, to which DEFENDANT stated that there was. DEFENDANT reached over to retrieve the bottle and provided it to Deputy Stracek. Deputy Stracek confirmed that DEFENDANT's driving privileges were revoked. Deputy Stracek then ran DEFENDANT through a series of field sobriety tests and eventually placed DEFENDANT under arrest for suspicion of driving while intoxicated.
During that time, other deputies responded to assist with a vehicle inventory and tow. Upon searching DEFENDANT's vehicle, the deputies located what appeared to be mushrooms in a black backpack in the front passenger's seat of the vehicle. On May 18, 2026, the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension conducted an examination of the suspected mushrooms and confirmed that the substance contained 0.897 grams of psilocyn.
