Good morning, and welcome to the first Friday of August.
The Bureau of Criminal Apprehension on Thursday released the names of the State Patrol officers involved in the death of Ricky Cobb II early Monday morning during a traffic stop. From the release: Ryan Londregan fired his department handgun. He has about a year-and-a-half of law enforcement experience. Londregan and Trooper Brett Seide both suffered minor injuries during the incident. Seide has two years of law enforcement experience and did not use force. The third trooper who responded is Garrett Erickson. He has about three years of law enforcement experience. He did not use force and was not injured. All three troopers are on standard administrative leave.
Sen. Amy Klobuchar is challenging Republican claims that the latest round of criminal charges against former President Donald Trump will bolster his 2024 election chances. MPR’s Mark Zdechlik reported that as Trump pleaded not guilty in federal court in Washington Thursday afternoon, Klobuchar took part in a groundbreaking for a Twin Cities trail system honoring veterans. Following the ceremony, Klobuchar said she thinks Republicans didn't do as well as many had expected during the 2022 midterm elections because voters did not approve of Trump's rhetoric and behavior after his loss to Joe Biden in 2020. "This is about democracy, as was pointed out really clearly in the indictment, and I suggest people read it,” Klobuchar said. “This is about our democracy, it's about someone who literally was undermining the vote." MPR News asked each of the four Republican members of Minnesota's congressional delegation for comment on the latest indictment against Trump. None responded.
Minnesota leaders expect a robust discussion next year about ways to fortify the state Capitol and nearby buildings without choking off public access to government. MPR’s Brian Bakst reports the Department of Administration has developed a $41 million proposal to improve security at the Capitol complex. The plan calls for work staged through 2028 to address identified vulnerabilities. Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan leads an advisory committee on Capitol security and said the needs have changed as the political environment has. “The temperature has increased, the tensions themselves, and we need to have a broader conversation,” Flanagan said. Several office buildings around the Capitol now require swipe cards for entry or have metal detectors. The Capitol itself remains more accessible, but officials say the building is ready for metal detectors if a decision is made to install them.
The Minnesota Reformer reports: About half of the people charged by the U.S. Department of Justice with stealing hundreds of millions from a federal program to feed children during the pandemic have been paid tens of millions more in state money for services such as providing child care and assisting seniors and people with disabilities. In the past dozen years, state agencies — largely the state Department of Human Services — have had contracts with about 30 businesses connected to 26 people charged in the Feeding Our Future scandal, according to a Reformer review of state records and corporate filings. Three have pleaded guilty in the federal case. Thomas Brever, an attorney for one of the Feeding Our Future defendants, said federal officials have expanded their investigation into other areas. “I know they’re looking at adult daycare issues,” he said. A spokeswoman for U.S. Attorney Andrew Luger declined to comment.
There’s been a lot of talk about people leaving Minnesota for other states. The Star Tribune reports it’s mostly young people: Every year, thousands more college students leave Minnesota than arrive, a Star Tribune analysis of U.S. census data shows. Boosters and business leaders warn that the losses could have major consequences for the state's workforce in the not-so-distant future. For a decade, State Demographer Susan Brower has been preaching about the departure of young adults. It often surprises Minnesotans who assume people leaving the state are largely retirees bound for warmer climes or workers seeking lower taxes. "Migration is being driven by decisions that happen very early on in adult life," Brower said. "Think of the late teens in your life, early 20s. They are moving for college, they are moving because they are in love and they are following someone across the country, they're deciding to go skiing in Colorado."
With few of the frills or ceremony so often associated with the late music icon, the Minnesota Department of Transportation on Thursday installed new road signs designating a section of highway in honor of late recording artist Prince. MPR’s Dana Ferguson reports: From now on, a seven-mile stretch of State Highway 5 near the musician’s Paisley Park home and studio in Chanhassen will be known as Prince Rogers Nelson Memorial Highway — with bright purple signs marking the route. About a dozen people, including fans and family members, were on hand Thursday as one of the signs was installed a short distance from Paisley Park. Purple flowers, photos and signs honoring and remembering Prince lined a fence along the property. Prince’s sister Sharon L. Nelson said that after a long effort to get the project approved at the Legislature, the sign’s installment felt like the “cherry on top.” “You know Prince’s DNA is all up and down this highway, right? For so many years, he really was,” Nelson said. “And we're going to remember, every time we pass this way, every great song he ever made.” | 