ELECTION 2021-MINNEAPOLIS POLICING

Minneapolis chief urges voters to reject replacing PD

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Minneapolis Police Chief Medaria Arradondo is urging voters to reject a ballot question that would replace the city’s police department. Arradondo said Wednesday it would do nothing to address the issues laid bare with the death last year of George Floyd. Voters will decide Tuesday whether to approve a new public safety unit that would take “a more comprehensive public health approach” to policing. The ballot question would also drop a required minimum number of police officers and give City Council members more oversight of police. Opponents have said the proposal is vague, with no specific plan for the replacement.

AP-US-TWIN-METALS-MINE-

Twin Metals to appeal federal decision on proposed mine

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Twin Metals says it will appeal a federal decision that dealt a serious blow to its proposed copper-nickel mine in northeastern Minnesota. Last week, the Biden administration ordered a mineral withdrawal study that could lead to a 20-year ban on mining upstream from the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, a popular recreational area in the Superior National Forest. The order also prohibits issuing new prospecting permits or leases for mining-related activities in that area. Twin Metals CEO Kelly Osborne said Wednesday that the company plans to move forward with the project under existing law.

VIRUS OUTBREAK-MINNESOTA

Network ready to give COVID-19 shots to young Minnesotans

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — Gov. Tim Walz says the state has a strong network of health care providers and others who are ready to administer the COVID-19 Pfizer vaccine to children ages 5 to 11 once final federal recommendations are issued next week. A Food and Drug Administration advisory panel on Tuesday voted to back Pfizer’s low dose vaccine for children. A recommendation from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is expected next week. Walz says Minnesota has more than 1,100 providers, including pediatricians, pharmacies, community clinics, schools and health agencies that are ready to administer the vaccine.

PRIEST KILLED

Priest struck and killed while riding bike in Rosemount

ROSEMOUNT, Minn. (AP) — A Twin Cities area priest has been struck and killed while riding his bike in Rosemount. Risen Savior Church in Burnsville announced Tuesday that the Rev. Dennis Dempsey was the bicyclist who died Monday afternoon after he was hit by a car on County Road 42. The 26-year-old Minneapolis driver who struck Dempsey was arrested at the scene on suspicion of criminal vehicular homicide in connection with driving in a negligent manner. Authorities say the man was driving with a revoked license. The 73-year-old priest came to Risen Savior in July after doing missionary work in Venezuela for two years.

AP-FACEBOOK-PAPERS-TRUMP-VIOLENCE

America 'on fire': Facebook watched as Trump ignited hate

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Internal Facebook documents reveal a country lit “on fire” in the days after controversial social media posts from then-President Donald Trump last year. Facebook's own analysis shows that hate speech and violence reports skyrocketed on the site immediately after Trump sent a social media message threatening to shoot looters in Minneapolis amid protests after the killing of George Floyd. Facebook took no action on Trump's post. The platform's automated controls were almost 90% certain that Trump's post violated company policies against inciting violence, contradicting Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg's claims last year that the post didn't break company rules. Facebook said that internal controls aren’t always correct and human reviews, like the one on Trump’s post, are more accurate.

SWINDLED BY ATTORNEY

Defense attorney convicted for swindling client of $15,000

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A Twin Cities criminal defense attorney has been convicted of bilking one her clients out of $15,000, The Hennepin County Attorney's Office says a jury on Monday found Kristi McNeilly, 46, of Woodbury, guilty of theft by swindle. Minnesota sentencing guidelines call for her to receive probation and some workhouse time, Freeman said. McNeilly’s client, a 53-year-old man, was arrested for having a small amount of drugs in a safe. The complaint says McNeilly made up a story about being told that her client would likely serve up to 20 years in prison unless he paid $50,000 to a police union. Authorities say the defendant gave McNeilly a $15,000 down payment and she spent the cashier's check on a mortgage payment, payments to credit cards and other personal spending,

XCEL-RATE HIKE REQUEST

Xcel Energy requests electric rate hike of about 20%

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Xcel Energy wants to increase its electricity rate by about 20% over the next three years, adding an average $15 to $21 per month cumulatively to residential customers’ bills. Minneapolis-based Xcel filed its request with the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission, which must approve any increase. The rate hike would generate about $677 million over the three years with a big portion directed to building out transmission lines to connect to renewable power sources. Xcel has 1.3 million electrical customers.

TENANTS-SEXUAL HARASSMENT

Landlords ordered to pay $736,000 in sexual harassment case

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A judge has ordered two Twin Cities rental companies and their officers to pay $736,000 to nearly two dozen women over allegations that one landlord pressured the tenants for sex to avoid eviction. The consent decree filed in federal court directs Fruen & Pfeiffer and M. Fruen Properties and individual defendants to pay $32,000 to each of the 23 women and pay a $14,000 civil penalty. The primary defendant, 70-year-old Reese Pfeiffer, is banned from managing property in the future. In a lawsuit filed by the U.S. Justice Department last year, Pfeiffer was accused of various acts of sexual harassment as far back as 2009 and continuing well into 2020 toward female tenants.

News from © The Associated Press, 2021