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Three slain Minnesota first responders remembered for their commitment to service

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Three slain Minnesota first responders remembered for their commitment to service


Two young police officers and a firefighter-paramedic were killed in a burst of gunfire Sunday as they responded to a domestic disturbance call in the Minneapolis suburb of Burnsville. Another officer also was injured, and the man identified as the shooter fatally shot himself, police said.

Here are the victims’ stories.


Burnsville Police Officer Paul Elmstrand.

Courtesy of the City of Burnsville

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Paul Elmstrand, 27, was the youngest of five children. He was raised on his family’s farm in North Branch, north of Minneapolis, where his parents, Rodney and Sara Elmstrand, mostly grow strawberries and pumpkins, his mother said Tuesday.

He enjoyed running cross-country as a boy and he chose to work in law enforcement because of his admiration for a family friend who was a state trooper, his mother said.

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Elmstrand was class president at Cambridge-Isanti High School in Cambridge, a city of about 10,000 residents near North Branch. He graduated with a criminal justice degree from the University of Northwestern-St. Paul in 2018 and married his high school sweetheart, Cindy, the next year.

They had two children: Maria, 2, and Mateo, 6 months.

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“He was the most generous, loving, patient person I’ve ever known with the biggest smile,” Cindy Elmstrand-Castruita said of her husband in a statement. “He had a servant’s heart and would drop everything to help someone who was in need.”

Elmstrand joined the Burnsville Police Department in 2017 as a community service officer, becoming a police officer in 2019. Among other roles, he was a member of the department’s mobile command staff.

Elmstrand also worked as a part-time officer with the University of Minnesota Police Department.

“He really loved people, and he loved Jesus.” said Sara Elmstrand. “He was a real people person who could talk to anyone. A great dad,. A great husband. I don’t think he had any enemies.”

Sara Elmstrand said her son’s funeral will be Saturday at Woodridge Community Church in Long Lake.

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Burnsville Police Officer Matthew Ruge.

Burnsville Police Officer Matthew Ruge.

Courtesy of the City of Burnsville

Most relatives of Burnsville Officer Matthew Ruge live in the Chicago area, but he and his family moved to Minnesota when he was a child, his cousin Josh Ruge said Tuesday via Facebook Messenger.

Ruge, who was 27, grew up in Wabasha, Minnesota, a city of about 2,500 people roughly 85 miles southeast of Minneapolis. A neighbor, Robin Gwaltney, recalled that he was kind and respectful, even at a young age.

“It was a pleasure to know him,” Gwaltney told the St. Paul Pioneer Press. “I’m so proud of what he turned out to be — such a wonderful young man. It’s just a darn shame.”

He graduated from Minnesota State University, Mankato’s Law Enforcement Program in 2018, the university said on its Facebook page. He joined the Burnsville police force in 2020. Ruge was part of the department’s crisis negotiations team and was a physical evidence officer.

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Josh Ruge said the last he had heard about Matt was how happy his family was that his cousin wasn’t an officer in Minneapolis during the protests that followed the May 2020 police killing of George Floyd.

“And then this ends up happening to him anyways,” Josh Ruge said.

Gwaltney wasn’t surprised that Matt Ruge went into law enforcement.

“He was a young man who wanted to do nice things for people,” she told the newspaper.


Burnsville firefighter and paramedic Adam Finseth.

Burnsville firefighter and paramedic Adam Finseth.

Courtesy of the City of Burnsville

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Adam Finseth, 40, was an Army veteran with a long history of service to his country and community.

Finseth graduated from John Marshall High School in Rochester, Minnesota, in 2001. He served in the Army Reserve from February 2003 to October 2003, when he joined the regular Army. He served until February 2009, according to an email from Fonda Bock, a spokesperson for the U.S. Army Human Resources Command.

During his time in the Army, Finseth was twice deployed to Iraq — for a year starting in September 2005, and for 14 months beginning in September 2007. He earned 13 awards, including the Army Achievement Medal and Army Good Conduct Medal, and was promoted to staff sergeant in January 2008.

Finseth began his firefighting and paramedic career with the fire department in Hastings, southeast of Minneapolis, in 2015, the Pioneer Press reported. He later worked with the department in Savage, Minnesota, before going to Burnsville.

The Savage Fire Department said on Facebook that Finseth treated everyone with respect, empathy and compassion, and that he “embodied the true spirit of a firefighter. … His legacy is etched in the memories of those who served alongside him and characterized by his calm demeanor and unwavering support for his fellow team members.”

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Finseth joined the Burnsville department as a firefighter and paramedic in February 2019, according to a news release from the city.

In his off time, Finseth coached youth baseball.

He was part of the Burnsville public safety team’s SWAT unit that was called to the scene of the domestic disturbance on Sunday. He was treating one of the injured officers when he was shot, police said.


A police officer poses for a portrait.

Burnsville Police Officer Adam Medlicott.

Courtesy of Burnsville Police Department

Burnsville police Sgt. Adam Medlicott was taken to Hennepin County Medical Center after being shot. He was released from the hospital Monday.

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Medlicott, 38, joined the police department in August 2014 and was promoted to sergeant in September 2022, the city said. He serves as a patrol sergeant, supervises community service officers and is a drug recognition expert, it said.

A city spokesperson said in an email that Medlicott was named Burnsville’s officer of the year in 2020.



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Shorthanded Clippers can’t keep pace with Anthony Edwards and Minnesota

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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.

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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.

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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.

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Church congregant filed lawsuit against alleged Minnesota church protesters

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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.”

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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.

Don Lemon reporting from an anti-ICE demonstration at Cities Church in St. Paul, Minn.@TheDonLemonShow via YouTube

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.

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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.

Nekima Levy Armstrong, Cities Church protest arraignment, St. Paul, Minn., February 2026
Nekima Levy Armstrong in St. Paul, Minn., on Feb. 13.Carlos Gonzalez / Star Tribune via Getty Images

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.

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Man arrested, charged with threatening to kill a state senator

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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. 

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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. 

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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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