Tag Archives: Minnesota

UPDATE: Multiple outlets are reporting that Franken will resign. Minnesota Public Radio reports: Minnesota Democrat Al Franken, facing fresh allegations of sexual misconduct and vanishing support from fellow Democrats, appears to be on the brink of resigning from the Senate. A Democratic official who spoke to Franken and key aides told MPR News Franken will resign Thursday. He’s expected to …

The Associated Press reports: Garrison Keillor, the former host of “A Prairie Home Companion,” says he’s been fired by Minnesota Public Radio over allegations of improper behavior. Keillor told The Associated Press of his firing in an email. In a follow-up statement, he says he was fired over “a story that I think is more interesting and more complicated than …

The Minneapolis Star-Tribune reports: A St. Cloud couple will not be able to refuse wedding videography services for same-sex couples after a federal judge on Wednesday dismissed their lawsuit challenging Minnesota’s human rights laws. In a 63-page ruling, Chief U.S. District Judge John Tunheim wrote that a provision of the Minnesota Human Rights Act (MHRA) prohibiting discrimination by businesses was …

The Minneapolis Star-Tribune reports: At the request of the mayor, Minneapolis Police Chief Janeé Harteau announced her resignation Friday afternoon in the aftermath of the officer-involved fatal shooting of Justine Damond, a 40-year-old Australian woman. Last Saturday, Damond called 911 around 11:30 p.m. to report a possible sexual assault near her home in south Minneapolis, and one of the responding …

The Associated Press reports: Minneapolis’ first openly gay police chief responded sharply Thursday to a decision by organizers of the Twin Cities Pride Parade to ask her department to minimize its participation in Sunday’s annual event due to tensions over the police shooting of Philando Castile. They said in a statement that they’re trying to respect the pain that many …

Via press release from the ACLU: An organization that filed a federal lawsuit last year to bar transgender students from using locker rooms consistent with their gender identity today announced that they have voluntarily dismissed their lawsuit. The American Civil Liberties Union and the ACLU of Minnesota had intervened in the case on behalf of a transgender girl, identified as …

NBC News reports: A clinic that was accused of pushing bogus “pray away the gay” therapy — and is owned by former Rep. Michele Bachmann’s husband — was cited by Minnesota health inspectors for failing to properly keep patient records. Inspectors going through the paperwork at the Counseling Care clinic in Lake Elmo found last month that “developmental condition” and …

CBS News reports: Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton collapsed while delivering the State of the State address on Monday, striking his head on a lectern. The 69-year-old Democrat appeared to be conscious as he was helped into a back room several minutes later, and a top staffer said he walked out of the Capitol on his own and was spending time …

The Minneapolis Star-Tribune reports: A St. Cloud husband-and-wife film company is challenging the constitutionality of Minnesota’s human rights act, arguing that they will be punished for refusing wedding services to same-sex couples. In one of the first challenges since same-sex marriage became legal in Minnesota in 2013, Carl and Angel Larsen’s Telescope Media Group filed suit Tuesday in federal court …

Donald Trump held a fundraiser in Minnesota this weekend and Michele Bachmann was one of the few local Republicans willing to be seen there. MPR News reports: Before the event, former Minnesota Republican Congresswoman Michele Bachmann said she has been advising Trump on foreign policy and issues of concern to Christian conservatives. She said Trump is right to call for …

“All Americans should be deeply troubled by the fatal shootings of Alton Sterling in Baton Rouge, Louisiana and Philando Castile in Falcon Heights, Minnesota. We’ve seen such tragedies far too many times, and our hearts go out to the families and communities who’ve suffered such a painful loss. “Although I am constrained in commenting on the particular facts of these …

The Minnesota Star-Tribune reports: A St. Paul man died Wednesday night after being shot by police in Falcon Heights, the immediate aftermath of which was shown in a video recorded by the man’s girlfriend as she sat next to him and which was widely shared on Facebook. The girlfriend started the live-stream video with the man in the driver’s seat …

From the New York Daily News: A Minnesota autopsy found an opioid overdose caused the unexpected April 21 death of musical megastar Prince inside his sprawling Paisley Park compound, the Associated Press reported. The results were made public weeks after a four-hour autopsy by local Chief Medical Examiner Dr. A. Quinn Strobl. A preponderence of evidence has since suggested Prince’s …

Via CBS Minnesota: From sidewalk picketing to online petitions, the opposition to Target’s bathroom and fitting room policy isn’t going away. Outside the state office building in St. Paul on Monday, a large truck rolled up carrying a strong anti-Target message. “Send Target a message — don’t shop where women and children’s emotional and physical safety and privacy are under …

The autopsy on Prince has been completed but the results may not be publicly known for weeks. Via press release: “As part of a complete exam, relevant information regarding Mr. Nelson’s medical and family history will be gathered. Anything which could be relevant to the investigation will be taken into consideration. Midwest Medical Examiners Office will not release information until …

Marco Rubio won’t be going home empty-handed tonight after all, having been projected to win the Minnesota caucus. Earlier tonight he appeared on CNN where he told a highly skeptical Jake Tapper that he intends to continue his race to the convention. Also winning Minnesota is Bernie Sanders, his third win tonight after Vermont and Oklahoma.

The Minneapolis Star-Tribune reports: Gov. Mark Dayton announced Friday he would appoint Court of Appeals Judge Margaret H. Chutich as associate justice of the Minnesota Supreme Court. Chutich would be the first openly gay member on the state’s highest court. She would fill the vacancy left by Wilhelmina M. Wright, who was confirmed by the Senate this week to the …

The Associated Press reports: The Diocese of Duluth, a sprawling but sparsely populated Roman Catholic diocese in northeastern Minnesota, filed an emergency petition for federal bankruptcy protection Monday after a jury found it partially responsible for millions of dollars awarded in a clergy sex abuse case last month. The diocese said the move for Chapter 11 reorganization was necessary after …

After hiding out for nearly two months, Minnesota’s infamous lion-killing dentist is going back to work tomorrow. Via the Associated Press: Walter Palmer, who has spent more than a month out of sight after becoming the target of protests and threats, intends to return to his suburban Minneapolis dental practice Tuesday. In an evening interview conducted jointly by The Associated …