Ramsey County Sheriff Slams Commissioners for ‘Utterly Ignoring Crime’

A war of words between the Ramsey County Board of Commissioners and Sheriff Bob Fletcher boiled over Friday as the board accused the sheriff of an “act of racism.”

The dispute began Tuesday when the board voted to increase oversight of Fletcher’s spending, which the sheriff welcomed.

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Watchdog Files Lawsuits in Minnesota over Voter Registration Duplicates, Finds Millions Lacking Required ID

With midterm elections a month away, an election integrity watchdog has filed multiple lawsuits in Minnesota over duplicate registered voters while also finding millions of voter registrations in New York missing personal identifying information.

Public Interest Legal Foundation, a conservative election law nonprofit, filed six lawsuits in Minnesota counties over 515 duplicate registrants. The lawsuits were filed in Nicollet, Dakota, Hennepin, Olmsted, Todd and Ramsey counties.

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Man Bailed Out by Freedom Fund Sent to Prison After Being Charged with New Crimes

A St. Paul man bailed out by the controversial Minnesota Freedom Fund after he was charged in two felony cases, including one involving a series of shootouts, has been sent to prison after being charged in new cases and failing to show up for sentencing after being bailed out by the fund.

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On the Heels of Roe v Wade Reversal, Minnesota County Judge Strikes Down to Many Abortion Restrictions

A Ramsey County judge struck down several longstanding abortion restrictions in a Monday ruling, just two weeks after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. 

“The right to choose to have an abortion … would be meaningless without the right to access abortion care,” Judge Thomas Gilligan said in his ruling. Gilligan was appointed to the bench by former Gov. Mark Dayton in September 2014.

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Minnesota Chiefs of Police Association Decry ‘Troubling Trend’ as ‘Prosecutorial Policies are Failing to Hold Criminals Accountable’

The Minnesota Chiefs of Police Association wrote a letter to the Hennepin and Ramsey County attorneys addressing their failure to prosecute some felony crimes. They wrote that they are “especially concerned” that “prosecutorial policies are failing to hold criminals accountable for their actions.”

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Ramsey County Sheriff Opposes County Attorney’s Move to Not Prosecute Juveniles

Ramsey County Sheriff Bob Fletcher wrote a letter to Ramsey County Attorney John Choi opposing his Collaborative Review Team (CRT), saying that it returns dangerous juveniles to society. In his letter, Fletcher asks Choi to pause the program until certain issues are resolved.

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Minnesota Police and Peace Officers Association Responds to Ramsey County Attorney Saying He Won’t Prosecute Felonies

The Minnesota Police and Peace Officers Association responded to Ramsey County Attorney John Choi’s announcement that he will no longer be prosecuting “most felony cases arising from low-level traffic stops.”

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Minnesota Police and Peace Officers Association Responds to Ramsey County Attorney Saying He Won’t Prosecute Felonies

The Minnesota Police and Peace Officers Association responded to Ramsey County Attorney John Choi’s announcement that he will no longer be prosecuting “most felony cases arising from low-level traffic stops.”

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Ramsey County Sheriff Accused of Racism After ‘Sundown’ Comment

Ramsey County Sheriff Bob Fletcher

Ramsey County Sheriff Bob Fletcher was accused of racism after making a comment about criminals leaving town by “sundown” during a Live on Patrol video. Critics called his comment “disgusting” and “unacceptable.” In the clip of the incident, Fletcher says, “100 years ago, though, we woulda just told them, ‘OK, son, you got ’til sundown to get outta of town.’”

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Republican Lawmaker Proposes Bill to Sell Minnesota’s $6.9 Million COVID-19 Morgue

A Republican lawmaker has drafted a bill that would require Minnesota to sell a facility it purchased for the storage of deceased COVID-19 patients.

Due to a projected surge in COVID-19 fatalities, the state of Minnesota spent $6.9 million in May to acquire a warehouse for the “temporary storage of human remains.” As of early June, however, the facility had yet to be used.

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Republicans Say Gov. Walz Has Failed to Provide Legal Justification for Coronavirus Shutdown

Republican lawmakers who sued Gov. Tim Walz said Friday that he has failed to provide legal justification for his response to the coronavirus pandemic.

“We are winning on this issue, and Gov. Walz knows it,” said Rep. Jeremy Munson (R-Lake Crystal), one of 13 Republican lawmakers who joined a lawsuit against Walz over his use of emergency powers during the pandemic.

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Ramsey County Board Wants COVID Morgue Relocated, Worried About ‘Taboo of Dead Bodies’

The Ramsey County Board of Commissioners expressed its “alarm and concern” regarding the state’s recent purchase of a commercial facility in St. Paul for the storage of deceased COVID-19 patients.

“On behalf of the Ramsey County Board, we are writing to express our alarm and concern regarding your decision to purchase the former Bix site for use as a morgue during the COVID-19 emergency. We fear that this location will only exacerbate the challenges facing the surrounding community, which is already one of the poorest, most vulnerable, and most disinvested in Minnesota,” the board said in a letter sent last week to Homeland Security and Emergency Management Director Joe Kelly.

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Keith Ellison Sued for Allegedly Illegal ‘Embedding’ of Bloomberg-Linked Lawyers in Attorney General’s Office

Attorney General Keith Ellison is being sued for declining to hand over documents related to his office’s hiring of a lawyer connected to Michael Bloomberg’s State Energy and Environmental Impact Center.

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St. Paul Archbishop Calls for Allegations Against Predecessor to be ‘Fully Addressed’

Archbishop Bernard Hebda of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis published a letter Friday addressed to Minnesota’s Catholics in which he calls for the allegations against his predecessor to be “fully addressed.” Hebda was brought in after the 2015 resignation of Archbishop John Nienstedt, who announced his resignation when…

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Attack on Historical Murals Spreads to St. Paul City Council

The St. Paul City Council is expected to commission several new murals to temporarily replace the current artwork hanging in its chambers that some believe is “very white and very male.” The Star Tribune reported Wednesday that the City Council will likely hold a vote in the coming weeks to…

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