HIGHWAY ENFORCEMENT

New enforcement effort leads to arrest of shooting suspect

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A new targeted speeding enforcement effort on highways around downtown Minneapolis, troopers arrested a driver suspected of being involved in multiple shootings. The Minnesota State Patrol says it was one of several arrests Saturday night in the new 10-day initiative that started Valentine’s Day to crack down on speeding and criminal activity, particularly on Interstate 94 between downtown and I-694. Nearly 150 vehicles were stopped on Saturday for speeding, which led to two DWI arrests, 14 citations for driving without a valid license and seven stopped for hands-free violation.

GOLDEN VALLEY SHOOTING

Police: Golden Valley drive-by shooting injures 1

GOLDEN VALLEY, Minn. (AP) — One person was reported to be critically hurt in a drive-by shooting in Golden Valley. Police say it happened about 8:35 p.m. Saturday near Duluth Street and N. Regent Avenue. Police released little information as the investigation is continuing, but said multiple shots were fired in an incident that involved two vehicles. No information was released about the injured person, who was taken to a hospital. On Sunday morning, interim police chief Scott Nadeau provided a brief update via email, saying that the shooting is still under investigation and the victim is expected to survive.

RETIRED OFFICERS

Suspected thief parks stolen car at retired officers' home

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — A Minneapolis man is in trouble with the law after he allegedly stole a car and tried to hide it at the home of two retired police officers. The St. Paul Pioneer Press reported Friday that Alexander John Thompson was charged Jan. 31 with auto theft in Dakota County. According to police, Thompson stole a car in Lakeville the morning of Jan. 30. He parked the car in a pole barn at a Greenvale Township home later that afternoon. The home is owned by a retired Prior Lake police officer and her husband, a retired New Mexico police officer. The couple saw Thompson and handcuffed him.

AIRPORT PARKING

St. Cloud airport to implement paid parking system in march

ST. CLOUD, Minn. (AP) — No more free parking at St. Cloud's airport. The St. Cloud Times reports that after decades of not charging for parking, the St. Cloud Regional Airport will launch a paid parking system on March 1. On-site parking in paved and gravel overflow lots will cost $5 per day. The fees mark one of the most visible changes since control of the airport shifted from the city to a regional authority in December. The move means some operating expenses that had been covered by property taxes will now be covered by user fees. The first two hours of short-term parking will remain free. The airport is the sixth-largest in Minnesota.

DAUNTE WRIGHT-OFFICER TRIAL

Wright family, activists see injustice in Potter's sentence

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The issue of race was barely brought up during the trial of Kim Potter. But Daunte Wright's family members and activists say the case has always been about race and that this was evident when Potter was sentenced to two years in prison. Potter had faced a presumptive sentence of just over seven years for first-degree manslaughter. The former Brooklyn Center officer has said she mistook her handgun for her Taser when she shot Wright. But some say her two-year sentence was too lenient, and that it shows the justice system treats Black and white people differently.

STOLEN GOODS

Police hunt for man after discovering cache of stolen goods

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — Police in St. Paul are hunting for a man after discovering a cache of stolen vehicles, drugs and ammunition at his residence. The Pioneer Press reported Friday that sheriff's deputies searched 42-year-old Timothy Lee Donavan Olson's residence in January after learning a stolen trailer might be at the address. They discovered four stolen motorcycles, a stolen snowmobile, a stolen truck, two stolen trailers, four guns and ammunition, methamphetamine, marijuana and fentanyl. Olson tried to flee but was captured. He was released pending an investigation but was charged Thursday with 20 counts. A warrant has been issued for his arrest.

JEOPARDY-MINNESOTA STUDENT

University of Minnesota student eliminated from 'Jeopardy!"

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A University of Minnesota student has been eliminated from a 'Jeopardy!" college tournament. The Minneapolis Star Tribune reported that sophomore Emmey Harris was eliminated from the tournament in a semi-final round that aired Friday in prime time. She came in third, losing by only $400. The finals will feature students from the University of Texas, Northeastern College and Kennesaw State University. That match-up will air Tuesday evening. Students from the University of Minnesota also reached the semi-finals in 1994, 1995 and 2010. Minnesota student Nabir Sarma won the title in 2020, the last time the college championship was held.

DAUNTE WRIGHT-OFFICER TRIAL-JUDGE

Family: Judge in Potter case swayed by 'white woman tears'

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The judge who sentenced white former Officer Kim Potter to two years in prison for killing Black motorist Daunte Wright cited the difficult job that police face — and Potter’s remorse — as justification for giving her a light sentence. Hennepin County District Judge Regina Chu choked up often as she said it was difficult to decide on a sentence. Potter said she meant to use her Taser but mistakenly fired her handgun into Wright’s chest during a traffic stop. Wright’s family and attorneys angrily condemned Chu, who is Asian American, for cutting Potter a break, saying a Black former officer convicted of shooting a white woman in a different Minnesota case got no such mercy despite his own expressions of remorse.

News from © The Associated Press, 2022