DAUNTE WRIGHT-OFFICER TRIAL

Jury takes shape for Potter trial in Daunte Wright's death

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Prosecutors and attorneys for the suburban Minneapolis police officer charged in Daunte Wright’s shooting death have seated nine of the 14 jurors needed for her trial, including a woman who said she owns a stun gun. Kim Potter, who is white, is charged with manslaughter in the April 11 shooting of Wright, a 20-year-old Black motorist, following a traffic stop in Brooklyn Center. Potter has said she meant to use her Taser on Wright when he pulled away from officers, but that she shot him with her handgun by mistake. The stun gun owner seated on the jury said she could set aside what she knows about her own device in judging the case.

POLICE SHOOTING-FOREST LAKE

Forest Lake man shot by officers during altercation has died

FOREST LAKE, Minn. (AP) — An armed man who was shot by three police officers after he allegedly threatened them in Forest Lake over the weekend has died. Authorities say that 47-year-old Bradley George Erickson, of Forest Lake, was shot Sunday after police responded to a report that a man was in a residence with a gun and the man had a protective order against him. Erickson left the scene in a vehicle that was eventually disabled by police, who then fired on Erickson following an altercation. Erickson died Wednesday at Hennepin County Medical Center. The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension identified the officers who fired their weapons as Forest Lake Officers Jonathan Glader and Matthew Smith, and Washington County Sheriff’s Deputy Greg Reiter.

MEDICAL MARIJUANA

Minnesota not adding anxiety as condition for medical weed

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — The Minnesota Department of Health says it would not add anxiety disorders as a qualifying condition for medical marijuana, unlike neighboring North Dakota and three other states. State Health Commissioner Jan Malcolm says there's not enough scientific evidence of benefits of medical cannabis use when compared to the possibility of “unintended consequences.” No new conditions were added to the existing list of 17 qualifying health issues. North Dakota added anxiety disorder in 2019, when it immediately became the most commonly cited condition. Minnesota did agree to add infused edibles in the form of gummies and chews to a list of approved products that includes pills, vapor oil, liquids, topicals, powdered mixtures, and orally dissolvable medicines like lozenges.

VIRUS OUTBREAK-MINNESOTA

COVID-19 hospital surge further taxes health care providers

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The number of people hospitalized for COVID-19 has surged above 1,500 in Minnesota, causing further strains on those working to care for them. Monday’s 1,532 coronavirus hospitalizations included 343 people in intensive care. Hospitals are trying to reduce non-COVID-19 admissions by delaying some non-emergency surgeries. The record 1,864 coronavirus hospitalizations in Nov. 29, 2020 combined with non-COVID cases to fill 6,991 inpatient beds. That is 7% lower than the hospital bed usage in Minnesota now. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Minnesota ranks 22nd among the states with about 73% of people 5 and older receiving a first dose of COVID-19 vaccine, but that leaves more than 1.4 million eligible people unvaccinated.

MIDWEST ECONOMY

November economy index falls, but confidence ticks up

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A new monthly survey of business leaders in nine Midwest and Plains states shows the region's economy remains healthy, and overall confidence in the economy over the next six months has improved. But about half of supply managers surveyed expect supply chain disruptions to get worse for the first six months of 2022. Firms reported that transportation issues such as trucking, air and rail delays were the greatest factors accounting for supply chain disruptions. The overall index for November of the Creighton University Mid-America Business Conditions released Wednesday fell to 60.2 from October's 65.2. Any score above 50 on the survey’s indexes suggests growth. The monthly survey covers Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma and South Dakota.

GEORGE FLOYD-OFFICERS-CIVIL RIGHTS

Civil trial in Floyd case on pace for January jury selection

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A federal civil rights trial for the four former Minneapolis police officers indicted in the killing of George Floyd is on track to begin in January. U.S. District Judge Paul Magnuson earlier this month mailed out jury questionnaires ordering prospective jurors in the case to report to the courthouse on Jan. 20. The summons packet obtained by the Star Tribune shows that trial for Derek Chauvin, J. Alexander Kueng, Tou Thao and Thomas Lane will run through mid-February. Attorneys for Kueng, Thao and Lane have argued that Chauvin should be tried separately because he has already been found guilty in a state case. They may ask Magnuson to overrule a magistrate judge who said the four should be tried together.

BODY IN DUCT

Man found dead in air duct of rural Minnesota residence

DENT, Minn. (AP) — Authorities say a 40-year-old northwestern Minnesota man was found dead in the air duct of his house. The Otter Tail County Sheriff’s Office says it received a call from a family member who went to check on the man Monday morning at his residence in rural Dent. KVRR-TV reports that the family hadn’t heard from him in several days. The sheriff’s office says the death appears accidental but it remains under investigation. No further information has been released. Dent is located about 65 miles southeast of the Moorhead and Fargo, North Dakota metropolitan area.

INFANT DEATH-MOTHER CHARGED

St. Cloud woman charged in stabbing death of infant child

ST. CLOUD, Minn. (AP) — A St. Cloud mother has been charged with second-degree murder in the death of her infant child. Fardoussa Abdillahi is accused of stabbing her 3-month-old son, wrapping him in a plastic garbage bag and putting him in a dumpster outside her apartment building. Authorities discovered the child Sunday along with multiple knives and bedding. The Midwest Medical Examiner’s Office identified sharp force injuries to the child’s neck and ruled the manner of death as a homicide. The death marks the city’s fifth homicide this year, setting a new record for the city of 69,000. Abdillahi made her first court appearance Tuesday, during which the judge set bail at $2 million without conditions or $1 million with conditions.

News from © The Associated Press, 2021