State of Minnesota v. Douglas John Olson

OPINION

ROSS, Judge.

The state charged Douglas Olson with driving while impaired. The prosecutor was unprepared to try the case on the date scheduled for trial because the state’s only witness — the arresting trooper — was voluntarily absent. The prosecutor moved to continue the trial to a later date, warning that if the district court denied the motion, the state would “take action, as it deems fit,” to simply dismiss the charge under criminal procedural rule 30.01 and refile it as a new case. The district court denied the state’s continuance motion and the state dismissed and refiled the…