Curtis GilbertA friend on Facebook was alarmed when saw a picture of the house Barbara Mays rents from Paul Bertelson, who’s been under scrutiny since a fire at one of the other 38 buildings he manages killed five children. “I want to know how that property you had pictured in the story was cleared for Section Read more →
MPR News Notes on the news from the Twin Cities
Archives for March 2014
Liala HelalThe Minneapolis I-35W and Lowry Avenue bridges over the Mississippi River will glow blue Tuesday night for Colon Cancer awareness, according to the Colon Cancer Coalition. The bridges will join Enger Tower in Duluth in glowing blue from twilight to daybreak. Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton declared March as Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month, according to a Read more →
Brandt WilliamsMore than a month after he was acquitted of a terrorist threats charge, Kevin Lavern Briggs, 56, says he finally got his gun and his permit back. Briggs was ordered to surrender his Kel-tec 9mm pistol and his permit to carry last year, after he was charged in connection with an incident which occurred on Read more →
Attorney’s fees awarded by a federal court judge last week have pushed the total Minneapolis payouts over Officer Michael Griffin’s two excessive force lawsuits to $410,653.33. Judge David Doty awarded $145,653.33 in attorney fees after a jury already awarded plaintiff Jeremy Axel $125,000 in compensatory and punitive damages late last year. Axel sued Griffin and Read more →
The Minneapolis City Council voted 11-2 this morning to reappoint City Attorney Susan Segal. One of the two “no” votes came from Ward 2 council member Cam Gordon, who has expressed disagreement with some of Segal’s legal opinions, particularly her take on the Vikings stadium funding proposal. Segal has said the use of $150 million Read more →
Jon CollinsThe city is negotiating to try to reopen Nicollet Avenue. But large segments of the surrounding community were never in favor of closing the street, and they left a mural on the back of the Kmart store as a testament to their opposition. Read more →
Hennepin County Sheriff Rich Stanek will make his re-election announcement from a restaurant in northeast Minneapolis tonight. He was first elected in 2006 and reelected in 2010. During his tenure as Sheriff, Stanek has been a part of conversations between law enforcement officials from across the country and President Obama over measures to combat gun Read more →
Trisha VolpeI love to understand how stuff works. So when I recently had the opportunity to peek into the world of crime-solving, I jumped at the chance. You can’t help but wonder if all those crime shows on television have it right. How can you possibly solve a complicated murder-mystery in an hour — minus 20 Read more →
When it comes to the freight trains that run along part of the proposed Southwest light rail line, Minneapolis and St. Louis Park don’t agree on much. Both cities want the light rail project to go forward, but neither one wants to be stuck with the freight traffic. The polarization has become so intense that Read more →
Last year, I blogged about some of the hundreds of gun-related cases prosecuted in Hennepin County. I’ll keep following county gun cases this year too, and will update The Cities each month with some noteworthy items. Here’s what I found in February: Minneapolis police say a man with a permit to carry a handgun crashed Read more →