Minnesota
Midday Headlines – April 16th, 2024 – Minnesota News Network
>>MN 1st Lady Walz, Lawmakers, Advocates Rally for Gun Safety
(St. Paul, MN) — Minnesota First Lady Gwen Walz, lawmakers, gun violence survivors, and more are gathering at the State Capitol this morning (TUES, 9 a.m.) to advocate for gun safety. Led by Moms and Students Demand Action, the group will rally for current legislation being considered by Minnesota lawmakers, including bills requiring improved secure firearm storage, gun owners to report Lost and Stolen guns to law enforcement, and a reduction in gun trafficking. Other rally speakers include Senator Bonnie Westlin of Plymouth, St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter, and Red Lake School shooting survivor Fran Mendoza.
>>NWS Issues Red Flag Warning in Northeast MN for Extreme Fire Risk
(Undated) — The National Weather Service (NWS) has issued a Red Flag Warning for several northeast Minnesota counties effective immediately through 9:00 p.m. due to extreme fire risk conditions. Affected counties include Cook, Itasca, Koochiching, Lake, and St. Louis. No burning is allowed when the warning is in effect, and residents should check any recent burning piles to ensure the fire is completely out.
>>U.S. Supreme Court won’t hear Mike Lindell’s Petition on Cell Phone Seizure
(Washington, DC) — The U.S. Supreme Court has declined to hear a petition from MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell that the FBI violated his constitutional rights when agents seized his cell phone at a fast food drive-thru in Mankato two years ago. The high court discussed the issue in late March and issued their decision Monday without comment. Lindell says the U.S. government has been “weaponized” against him, and he’ll return to court to try to get his cell phone back. Lindell is the subject of a federal investigation into a security breach in the 2020 election in Colorado.
>>Twin Cities Felons Pleads Guilty to Illegal Possession of a Firearm
(Minneapolis, MN) — A Twin Cities man has pleaded guilty to illegally possessing a firearm. Court documents say 45-year-old Salvador Pachecho was stopped by a Minnesota State Patrol trooper on October 7th, 2022, for multiple traffic violations. Troopers smelled marijuana in the car, and a drug-sniffing dog located additional drugs in Pachecho’s vehicle. A search of the car turned up a Kahr .45 caliber semi-automatic pistol inside a backpack. Pachecho is set to be sentenced at a later date.
>>Wadena Man Sentenced to Over 13 Years in Prison in Connection with Vehicular Homicide
(Stillwater, MN) — A Wadena man has been sentenced to over 13 years in prison for his role in killing 80-year-old Shirley Bilden of Maplewood in 2021. 36-year-old Scott Hardy pleaded guilty in February to a plea deal convicting him of the charge of fleeing a peace officer in a motor vehicle, resulting in death. Court documents say police responded to a call that a Chevrolet Tahoe parked outside a Cub Food in Oakdale was stolen around 4 p.m. July 10th, 2021. When officers arrived and asked Hardy to leave the car, he fled quickly. Police eventually found Hardy had run a red light, which caused a crash between two other vehicles. Three people were injured in the crash, including Bilden, who died from her injuries four days later at the hospital. Hardy was arrested shortly after fleeing the collision, attempting to steal another car at a nearby cemetery.
>>Nearly 100 MN Farms Recognized As Century Farms
(Minneapolis, MN) — Almost 100 farms in Minnesota are receiving recognition for being family-owned and operated for over a century. The Minnesota State Fair and Minnesota Farm Bureau have announced this year’s Century Farms list. One family has continuously owned each of the 97 farms on the list for at least 100 years, is still being used for farming, and covers a minimum of 50 acres. This year’s list includes several farms that date back to the 1800s, the oldest being the Berquam-Krogstad Family Farm in Houston County, originally purchased in 1855.
>>Minnesota Lotto Winner
(Roseville, MN) — Someone playing the lottery in southwestern Minnesota is nearly two million dollars richer. A Gopher 5 ticket sold at Food N Fuel in Worthington is worth $1,911,615. The game is played on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. The prize now resets to $100,000 for the next drawing.
>>Ludacris and T-Pain Coming to the 2024 Minnesota State Fair
(Falcon Heights, MN) — Hip-hop artists Ludacris and T-Pain will perform at the Minnesota State Fair on August 27th. Ludacris has sold over 24 million rap albums and is an actor in the Fast & Furious movie franchise. T-Pain is an award-winning rapper, singer, and producer known for using the auto-tune effect on his vocals. Tickets for the August 27th show go on sale this Friday.
Minnesota
Vikings Have a Dubious Connection to the Dexter Lawrence Trade
Of the many terrible roster decisions Minnesota sports teams have made over the past 30 years, the worst of the bunch may have been trading Randy Moss to the Raiders for the No. 7 pick in the draft and linebacker Napoleon Harris.
Why are we bringing up a trade that happened 21 years ago? Because the New York Giants traded defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence to the Cincinnati Bengals for the No. 10 pick in this week’s NFL Draft. It was the first time a non-quarterback has been traded for a top-10 pick since the infamous Moss trade in 2005.
Minnesota traded Moss for the Raiders’ first-round pick, Harris, and a seventh-round pick on March 2, 2005. The Vikings used the No. 7 pick on wide receiver Troy Williamson, who never panned out in the NFL. He had 24 catches for 372 yards and two touchdowns as a rookie, 37 receptions for 457 yards and zero touchdowns in 2006, and just 18 catches for 240 yards and one touchdown in 2007.
Williams led the league with 11 dropped passes in 2006. Minnesota traded him to the Jacksonville Jaguars for a sixth-round pick after the 2007 season, where he played in 10 games over two seasons and totaled just eight catches for 64 yards. He was cut before the start of the 2010 season, and that was a wrap on the former South Carolina speedster’s NFL career.
Moss didn’t put up jaw-dropping numbers with the Raiders for two seasons, but he set an NFL record with 23 touchdown catches in 2007 with the New England Patriots. He caught 47 touchdowns in 48 regular-season games with the Patriots from 2007 to 2009.
Whether it was trading Moss to the Raiders, the Timberwolves sending Kevin Garnett to the Boston Celtics — or drafting Ricky Rubio AND Johnny Flynn over Steph Curry — or the Twins cutting David Ortiz and watching him become one of the greatest players in MLB history with the Boston Red Sox, Minnesota sports teams have a long history of making terrible decisions.
The Bengals, meanwhile, gave up the 10th overall pick for one of the best defensive tackles in the league. They’ll likely get great production from Lawrence, while the Giants are now under pressure to get the 10th pick right. New York also holds the No. 5 pick in Thursday’s first round of the draft.
By the way, the Vikings had two picks in the first round of the 2005 draft. After taking Williamson, they used the No. 18 pick on defensive end Erasmus James. He was just as much of a bust as Williams, playing in 23 games in three years with the Vikings. He had four sacks as a rookie, but injuries wiped out most of his 2006 and 2007 seasons before he was traded to Washington for a conditional seventh-round pick.
James was cut by Washington in December 2009, marking the end of his NFL career.
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Minnesota
Boldy, Eriksson Ek help Wild cruise past Stars in Game 1 of Western 1st Round | NHL.com
Kirill Kaprizov had a goal and two assists, and Ryan Hartman had a goal and an assist for the Wild, who are the No. 3 seed in the Central Division. Wallstedt made 27 saves in his Stanley Cup Playoff debut, and Zuccarello had three assists.
“I was definitely nervous,” said Wallstedt, a rookie. “I think it shows that it means something to you. I like a little bit of nerves. I think it’s something good. There were definitely some nerves throughout the day and then a little bit extra rolling into the game. But after the national anthem was over and the first couple pucks started coming, you’re good.
“I wanted to play and I felt like I have been going good. I was a little surprised (to get the start). But I was very excited as soon as I got the news. I just wanted to make sure I was ready today.”
Jason Robertson scored, and Jake Oettinger made 23 saves for the Stars, who are the No. 2 seed in the Central.
“We didn’t deserve to win,” Dallas forward Mikko Rantanen said. “I think two power-play goals for them, two a little-bit bounces for them where we had guys in the right spot. Just even keel. Playoffs are like this. Sometimes you lose a game, you can feel like you’re done. But that’s the mentality you need to have, you’ve got to reset and learn from mistakes.
“First 30 minutes, we didn’t win enough battles. They were just that little bit stronger in the battles and that’s why they were able to make us defend more than we want to. Just got to be stronger.”
Game 2 is here on Monday (9:30 p.m. ET; FDSNWI, FDSNNO, Victory+, ESPN, TVAS2, SN360).
“We prepped for a couple days coming into this one. Now, we will gather information from this game and continue to move forward,” Minnesota coach John Hynes said. “For me, it’s game to game and day to day. We want to continue to get better. We won and they [Dallas] lost. It’s not so much being satisfied where you’re at or that’s what it is. We need to continue to find ways to get better.”
Eriksson Ek gave the Wild a 1-0 lead at 5:35 of the first period on the power play. He scored on a one-timer from the left hash marks to finish a tic-tac-toe passing play with Zuccarello and Boldy, who found an open Eriksson Ek with a pass from the goal line.
“I think every team in the playoffs talks about not getting too high or too low. Just enjoy every day and each game and then we will go from there,” Eriksson Ek said. “I think we played pretty good today. The next game is a new game, so we just have to do it over and over every game. We know they are probably not the happiest with that game, so I am sure it’s going to be hard next game.”
Minnesota
ICE agent assault charge marks a ‘milestone’ for Minnesota prosecutors
Minnesota prosecutors charged a federal immigration agent with assault accusing him of involvement in a February road-rage incident.
Trump administration ends Minnesota immigration operation
Border Czar Tom Homan announced the end of Minnesota’s immigration operation after fatal shootings heightened tension and community backlash.
Minnesota prosecutors charged a federal immigration agent with assault, saying the agent was involved in a February road-rage incident during the Trump administration’s Operation Metro Surge.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent Gregory Donnell Morgan Jr., 35, faces two counts of second-degree assault with a dangerous weapon, according to April 16 Hennepin County court records. He has a nationwide warrant for his arrest.
On Feb. 5, prosecutors said Morgan allegedly drove illegally on the shoulder of a congested Minnesota highway in an unmarked SUV and pointed his weapon at two people in another car.
Morgan is the first agent charged in Operation Metro Surge, the controversial Minneapolis-area federal immigration operation that resulted in two American citizens fatally shot by federal officials, according to the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office.
The charges “reflect an important milestone in our efforts to seek accountability for the harms inflicted on our community during Operation Metro Surge,” Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty said in an April 16 video statement.
Second-degree assault with a gun has a presumptive sentence of 36 months in prison if convicted, she said.
“Mr. Morgan’s conduct was extremely dangerous,” she said, adding his actions could have led to “another disastrous incident” in the community.
Neither ICE nor the Department of Homeland Security immediately responded to email requests for comment. A cell phone listed for Morgan, identified as a Maryland resident, didn’t immediately respond to a call or text message.
The incident came less than two weeks after two Customs and Border Protection officers shot and killed Alex Pretti, 37, during a protest in Minneapolis. Pretti would be the second American killed during Metro Surge after an ICE agent in early January fatally shot Renee Good, 37, while she drove her SUV in Minneapolis near an immigration operation.
Later in February, the Trump administration drew down Metro Surge, which officials called the largest immigration operation in modern American history.
Investigators said they interviewed Morgan, who identified himself as the driver. Morgan told investigators he and the other ICE employee were returning from a surveillance shift. Morgan said he feared for his life and others’ safety, so he pulled up alongside the vehicle and drew his Glock 19 firearm. He said he identified himself as police.
State investigators said neither Morgan nor the other ICE agent reported the incident to an ICE supervisor.
The April 16 warrant, signed by District Court Judge Paul Scoggin, said there was a “substantial likelihood” Morgan would fail to respond to a summons, and officials couldn’t locate him.
On April 18, Daniel Borgertpoepping, a spokesperson for the county attorney’s office, said there is no knowledge of Morgan being arrested yet.
Eduardo Cuevas is based in New York City. Reach him by email at emcuevas1@usatoday.com or on Signal at emcuevas.01.
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