JAMESTOWN — A man reportedly shooting a gun died after being shot by a Jamestown police officer early Tuesday, Dec. 3, in downtown Jamestown, according to Maj. Justin Blinsky, assistant chief of police for the Jamestown Police Department.

Blinsky said in a news release issued on Tuesday that the Stutsman County Communications Center received a 911 call at 1:17 a.m. Tuesday of a male armed with a gun and a knife standing in the parking lot behind Fred’s Den bar, 113 1st Ave. S. The caller reported the male had been involved in a physical altercation inside the bar and had been removed.

Blinsky said Jamestown police officers immediately responded to the area, and as they responded, the 911 caller said the male had started shooting at the building. The suspect fired many rounds, Blinsky said. The first officer arriving at the scene immediately located the suspect, who was still firing rounds from a rifle in the parking lot. The officer ordered the suspect to put his weapon down, but the suspect refused and jeopardized the safety of the officer, Blinsky said. The officer shot the male suspect.

Officers rendered first aid to the suspect, and he was transported to Jamestown Regional Medical Center, where he died, Blinsky said.

The name of the suspect is not being released until the next of kin can be notified, Blinsky said. The North Dakota Bureau of Criminal Investigation is investigating the incident, he said. The officers involved in this incident have been placed on standard administrative leave while the incident is investigated.

The Stutsman County Sheriff’s Office, Jamestown Area Ambulance and the North Dakota BCI assisted in this incident.

Our newsroom occasionally reports stories under a byline of “staff.” Often, the “staff” byline is used when rewriting basic news briefs that originate from official sources, such as a city press release about a road closure, and which require little or no reporting. At times, this byline is used when a news story includes numerous authors or when the story is formed by aggregating previously reported news from various sources. If outside sources are used, it is noted within the story.

BISMARCK, N.D. (KFYR) – An investigation by the Burleigh County State’s Attorney’s office into Burleigh County Auditor and Treasurer Mark Splonskowski has identified a possible violation of the Hatch Act.

The investigation is centered around a group text message acquired by Burleigh County State’s Attorney Julie Lawyer from Splonskowski’s personal phone during work hours advising 66 other people to not vote for Burleigh County Commissioner Brian Bitner.

“The body of the text read, ‘I’m just letting you know from the perspective of being the county auditor for a year and a half, please do not vote for Brian Bitner for County Commissioner. If you want more details as to why, let me know. Also, let your friends know too. Thanks,‘” said Burleigh County State’s Attorney Julie Lawyer.

Lawyer said if Splonskowski is found guilty of a Hatch Act violation by the Federal Office of Special Council, the county commission would lose twice that employee’s annual salary in federal grant funds. She also said that as an elected employee, Splonskowski cannot be fired for a Hatch Act violation.

We reached out to Splonskowski for comment and have not heard back yet.

Copyright 2024 KFYR. All rights reserved.

Rob Port’s column, ”

The Maah Daah Hey monument sounds interesting, but the proponents should be ready to compromise

,” returns to Rob Port’s knee-jerk “left-wing” baiting of very moderate conservation groups, and bellyaching over the hurt feelings of Big Carbon. He should really look again at a map of the Maah Daah Hey area and see that it is already “comprised,” a non-contiguous patchwork. 

Instead of demeaning Indigenous Nations and their interests in the area, Port should also dig deeper. A little investigative research would also tell him that this area includes the northeastern limit in the range of the Ponderosa Pine. It is North Dakota’s most unique woodland. At one time it was designated a national forest, North Dakota’s only one, until the USDA renamed it a national grassland for some reason. It is also the trailhead for North Dakota’s longest off-road bicycle trail. Hunting and camping would still be allowed as a national monument.

The U.S. is already the world’s No. 1 oil producer, and North Dakota is in the top 3 states in that regard. The oil companies will live. Their funding of science-denialism is a big piece of their opposition to protecting our public lands. We need to fight back against MAGA anti-conservationism and Mccarthyism. A Maah Daah Hey National Monument would not just be a feather in North Dakota’s hat, but also for the U.S.

Ron Gaul lives in Fargo.