Minnesota
Study to use trail cameras for research on northern Minnesota deer
GRAND RAPIDS — The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources wants a better handle on the deer population in northeastern and north-central areas of the state and is starting a three-year research project to get the answers.
DNR wildlife researchers will be placing trail cameras across a broad swath of St. Louis, Itasca and Cass counties, with a bit of Beltrami and Aitkin counties included in the study area as well — deer management units 169, 176, 177, 178, 197 and 679.
In the coming weeks, some private landowners will receive letters from the DNR requesting permission to put a camera on their property so the DNR can get results from a mix of public and private land across the region.
Gary Meader / Duluth Media Group
Landowners who receive the letter are asked to respond as soon as possible.
“One of the things we want to know is if there’s a different distribution of deer on private land compared to public land,” said Eric Michel, DNR wildlife biologist leading the project. “Across this study area, it’s almost 50/50 public to private land ownership.”
There will be 40 cameras placed at random locations across the entire study area, each taking photos every five minutes from July through August. The DNR will then pick up the cameras before hunting seasons begin. The cameras will be moved to different locations in 2025 and 2026.
Computer programs using artificial intelligence will be used to sift through the tens of thousands of time-lapse images and come up with estimates on not only the overall population of those areas but also the ratio of bucks to does and does to fawns.
“By July, the bucks are starting to grow antlers, the fawns are moving around more, but they still have spots, so we can differentiate between adult does, bucks and fawns pretty easily,” Michel said.

Steve Kuchera / 2018 file / Duluth Media Group
The time-lapse camera research technology and methodology were successfully used in earlier test studies conducted in 2021 and 2023, but this is the first time Minnesota DNR researchers have used it on a broad scale, Michel said.
Traditional deer population modeling relies heavily on hunter-harvest data and computer modeling. The camera project will provide additional data to increase confidence in making management decisions in the study area.
Some DNR wildlife managers have noted that deer in forested parts of the state seem to congregate near areas with at least some agricultural fields, if available, which may bring more deer onto private land.
The camera study, with results expected by 2027, could also help determine if the DNR should issue antlerless permits based on land ownership, potentially with more permits offered on private land if more deer are located there. Wisconsin already issues doe tags separately for public and private land.
“That’s one theory. But we really don’t know yet whether more deer are on private land in this area,” Michel said.
Deer across much of Northeastern Minnesota have been hit hard over the past decade, with seven of the past 10 winters being extremely harsh, with deep snow likely causing higher than normal deer mortality. That’s caused a big drop in the deer population, reduced antlerless permits available to hunters, and cut hunter success by half or more in some areas, especially north of Duluth, where the state’s heaviest snowfall occurs.
The record warm and snowless winter of 2023-24 should help the region’s deer to recover some, although several mild winters will be needed for deer populations to fully rebound to the all-time record levels of the early 2000s.
Meanwhile, deer in the Northland face ongoing issues of reduced habitat quality and predation by wolves year-round. In June, newborn fawns are also eaten by black bear and bobcat.
“One of the reasons we want to get three years of data is to compare the impact of winter on (deer) abundance,” Michel said. “We’re probably going to see at least one of the three study seasons come after a winter that’s higher on the winter severity index.”
Michel said that deer management unit 678 around Grand Rapids has seen the region’s only deer that tested positive for chronic wasting disease. Increased data on deer numbers in that area should help the DNR monitor any spread of the always fatal disease.
Meanwhile, DNR officials in Minnesota and Wisconsin remind people to leave any newborn fawns they find alone. It’s common for does to leave their fans alone for long periods each day, but they almost always return, and there’s usually no need for any human intervention.
John Myers reports on the outdoors, natural resources and the environment for the Duluth News Tribune. You can reach him at jmyers@duluthnews.com.
Minnesota
Shorthanded Clippers can’t keep pace with Anthony Edwards and Minnesota
Anthony Edwards scored 31 points, Donte DiVincenzo added 18 and the surging Minnesota Timberwolves beat the Clippers 94-88 on Thursday night.
Jaden McDaniels and Ayo Dosunmu each scored 12 points and Rudy Gobert had 13 rebounds to help the Timberwolves improve to 5-1 since Feb. 9 and 3-1 since the All-Star break.
Edwards, returning to the site of the All-Star Game, where he was the MVP, was 12 for 24 from the floor and sealed the victory with a step-back three-pointer over two defenders for a 92-88 lead with 42.9 seconds left.
Minnesota improved to 2-0 on a three-game trip.
Derrick Jones Jr. scored 18 points and Bennedict Mathurin added 14 for the Clippers, who struggled from the outset with a season-low 38 points in the first half. Kris Dunn had 11 points for the Clippers (27-31), who have lost three consecutive games for the first time since December.
The Clippers struggled on offense without star Kawhi Leonard, out because of ankle soreness. The Clippers shot 40.5% from the floor, including 18.2% (four for 22) in the second quarter. Minnesota shot 43.4% in the game.
The Timberwolves (37-23) scored just 15 points in the second quarter and still topped the Clippers, who had 11. Minnesota led 44-38 at halftime behind 12 points from DiVincenzo and 11 from Edwards.
The Clippers led by six in the third quarter and were up 68-63 heading into the fourth. Edwards’ drive and reverse layup put the Timberwolves up for good at 76-74 with 7:40 remaining.
The Clippers pulled within one three times in the last 2½ minutes, but Edwards answered each time. He scored the Timberwolves’ last nine points.
Up next for Clippers: vs. New Orleans on Sunday night.
Minnesota
Church congregant filed lawsuit against alleged Minnesota church protesters
A St. Paul church member has filed a federal lawsuit alleging that a group of individuals, including journalist Don Lemon and activist Nekima Levy Armstrong, unlawfully disrupted service last month as part of a coordinated political demonstration.
The complaint, filed by Ann Doucette in the U.S. District Court of Minnesota, alleges that a Jan. 18 demonstration at Cities Church interfered with her ability to worship and caused her to suffer damages, including emotional distress and trauma.
In addition to the former CNN anchor and Armstrong, the complaint names journalist Georgia Fort and activists Will Kelly, Jerome Richardson, Trahern Crews and Jamael Lundy. It also names St. Paul school board member Chauntyll Allen.
Doucette and seven of the defendants did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Doucette filed the complaint without the representation of an attorney. In an emailed statement to NBC News, Crews denied the lawsuit’s allegations “with empathy and compassion.”
The lawsuit accuses the group of civil conspiracy, aiding and abetting, intentional infliction of emotional distress, interference with religious exercise and trespassing.
“As a result of Defendants’ actions, the worship service was disrupted, congregants experienced fear and distress, and Plaintiff’s ability to freely exercise her religion in a private place of worship was unlawfully interfered with,” the lawsuit states.
All eight defendants are also facing federal charges for conspiracy against the rights of religious freedom at a place of worship and for interfering with the exercise of the right of religious freedom. Lemon has pleaded not guilty to all charges, saying outside the court, “I wanted to say this isn’t just about me, this is about all journalists, especially in the United States.”
Fort, Crews and Lundy were released on bond and entered not guilty pleas, according to The Associated Press.
This is the latest legal action tied to protests in the Twin Cities, where tensions remain over the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown and the fatal shootings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti.
According to the lawsuit, the demonstrators engaged in “coordinated conduct” by organizing meetings ahead of the “Operation Pullup” protest and promoting it on social media.
The lawsuit alleges that on the morning of Jan. 18, a coordinated group of individuals entered Cities Church, halting the worship service, and chanting “‘ICE Out!’ and ‘Hands Up, Don’t Shoot!’” while obstructing aisles. Protesters could allegedly be seen “confronting the pastor and congregants in a menacing manner,” the lawsuit says, noting that their chanting and “aggressive gestures” caused “severe emotional distress, fear, anxiety, and trauma” and caused children “terror.”
Demonstrators gathered at the church because they said its pastor, David Easterwood, was the acting director of an ICE field office in the city, the lawsuit says.
Lemon was arrested in January in California and accused of violating federal civil rights law after covering the protest on Jan. 18. He was released on a personal recognizance bond before a federal grand jury in Minnesota returned the indictment against Lemon and eight co-defendants, all of whom are also named in Doucette’s lawsuit.
In the lawsuit, Doucette alleges that Lemon specifically livestreamed the protest, “noting congregants’ fear and distress, and appeared to take satisfaction in the disruption.”
Levy Armstrong, a Minneapolis-based civil rights attorney and activist, was also arrested for her participation in the St. Paul protest. Her arrest drew national attention after the White House shared on social media doctored photos where she appeared to be crying.
Minnesota
Man arrested, charged with threatening to kill a state senator
A Hubbard County man was arrested and charged after threatening to kill a Minnesota state senator on Facebook.
Court documents filed on Wednesday state the Minnesota State Patrol were investigating a threat posted by John Tobias saying that he would “kill every one of you treasonous [expletive] immediately” if he did not get money back that he claims he lost during the 2020 COVID shutdown.
Court documents go on to say that Tobias then called the Minnesota Attorney General’s Office asking for something to be done about “Minnesota Governor Tim Walz ‘unconstitutionally’ shutting down the state due to COVID-19.
The Minnesota State Patrol contacted Hubbard County deputies regarding Tobias. Court documents state Hubbard County investigators were already familiar with Tobais after speaking with him regarding similar threats he made in Jan.
The charging documents state that investigators searched Tobias’ residence on Tuesday and found an arsenal of guns and 45 boxes of ammunition.
Tobias was taken into custody. During an interview with law enforcement, Tobias admitted to making the threat on Facebook. He also told investigators that “he did not have any intention of killing anyone, but admitted he was trying to get people’s attention,” according to court records.
In late 2025, Lt. Col. Jeremy Geiger of the Minnesota State Patrol, who oversees Capitol security, told a panel of lawmakers that threats to lawmakers had doubled between 2024 and 2025.
Tobias made his first court appearance Wednesday morning and is expected back in court early next month.
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