MINNEAPOLIS — A man imprisoned for an assault that left his victim in a coma for five years is now charged with murder.

Forty-two-year-old Willie Hervey had been in a vegetative state until he died recently of pneumonia. In June of 2007, Hervey tried to stop Scott Lipe from stealing his SUV outside a bar in Minneapolis and was thrown from the vehicle after jumping on the running board.

An autopsy shows Hervey’s pneumonia death was the result of head injuries he previously suffered.

Lipe is serving a 10-year sentence for first-degree assault. Hennepin County prosecutors have now charged Lipe with second-degree murder.