Minnesota
Minnesota mom shares story of son’s overdose during Senate hearing on internet child safety
MINNEAPOLIS — Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar believes a “boiling point” has been reached after grilling multiple tech CEOs during a hearing on Wednesday.
Klobuchar is a member of the Senate Judicary Committee which hosted the hearing titled “Big Tech and the Online Child Sexual Exploitation Crisis” and featured the CEOs of Meta, TikTok, Snapchat, X and Discord.
“We have to take action here. There are kids that are dying. There are kids that think they’re getting a Percocet, and it’s laced with fentanyl,” Klobuchar said in an interview with WCCO’s Allen Henry after the hearing. “There are others that get involved in sending pictures to someone they think is a girlfriend or a boyfriend…and then they get bribed with those pictures. We’ve had over 20 commit suicide in the US, just in the last year.”
Bridgette Norring of Hastings was invited by Klobuchar to be part of Wednesday’s hearing.
Norring’s 19-year old son Devin died in April 2020. She told WCCO last summer he had a cracked molar and migraines, but COVID lockdowns canceled his dental appointments. Devin’s friend said he could help him find a painkiller. It only took one pill.
“And that Percocet was purchased via Snapchat, turned out to be 100% fentanyl,” Norring said. “We thought we had all the talks with Devin, all my children about the drugs out there, the dangers on social media. This is a talk we missed, unfortunately.”
Norring shared the story with lawmakers — and those CEOs — on Wednesday.
“For so long, big tech has been able to do whatever they want to do. And there’s been no consequences. So they need to be held to a higher standard higher accountability so parents have recourse when their children are harmed,” Norring said.
“More than 30% of people that get fentanyl, it’s off of social media. These drug dealers that are using social media…They don’t really care if anyone dies, they’re anonymous behind an app, behind a website,” Sen. Klobuchar said. “We have to make it easier for law enforcement to go after the perpetrators and the cartels in Mexico and in China that are putting this stuff up on these platforms, they need that information from the platforms to do that.”
There were several tense moments during Wednesday’s hearing. Both Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Snapchat CEO Evan Spiegel apologized to parents at the urging of lawmakers.
“I’m sorry for everything you have all been through,” Zuckerberg said. “No one should go through the things that your families have suffered and this is why we invest so much and we are going to continue doing industry-wide efforts to make sure no one has to go through the things your families have had to suffer.”
“I’m so sorry that we have not been able to prevent these tragedies. We work very hard to block all search terms related to drugs on our platform,” Spiegel said. “We proactively look for and detect drug-related content. We remove it from our platform, preserve the evidence, and then we refer it to law enforcement for action. We’ve worked together with nonprofits and with families on education campaigns, because the scale the fentanyl epidemic is extraordinary. Over 100,000 people lost their lives last year and we believe people need to know that one pill can kill. That campaign was viewed more than 260 million times on Snapchat.”
Both Norring and Klobuchar found the apologies to be lacking.
“It’s nice to hear the apology, though I would have preferred … A little bit more heart behind it just other than some canned response that we’ve heard over and over again, over these last four years since I’ve lost my son. But it’s going to take more than an apology. There’s no apology in the world to make up for what’s been done,” Norring said.
“You always want someone to own things. And apologies are important,” Klobuchar added. “But we got to do so much more. They have hired so many lobbyists to stop these bills. And Bridget is just here, right? She doesn’t have five lobbyists for every member of Congress. We have to stand up and say, enough is enough.”
With the rise of AI, Klobuchar says the need to act is even more urgent.
Just last week, fake explicit images of superstar Taylor Swift spread like wildfire on social media. She hopes another example isn’t created this November.
“When the Boeing door fell off that plane, they grounded 700 planes right there. (Bridgette’s) son dies or we have kids committing suicide and everyone says, well, these tech companies are too powerful so we’re not going to do anything,” the senator said. ”I see the future and with AI coming, our own democracy, these fake voice videos that we’re seeing and fake pictures, we have got to get a hold on it.”
Nearly four years after her son’s death, Norring is still optimistic lawmakers will get something done.
“I feel a little bit more hopeful today that these bills will get passed,” she said. “Just seeing everybody come together, Republicans and Democrats, that is what truly needs to happen in order for these bills to get passed. Seeing that today, and seeing that momentum, it really brought some much needed hope and in my heart that this will finally be done.”
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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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 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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