Bob CollinsA divided court declined to find unconstitutional a provision in the state’s vehicle forfeiture law that lets police confiscate a car in a household where someone has three or more DWI convictions. Read more →
MPR News Reflections and observations on the news
Crime and Justice
Throw a black robe on a person and we’ve been conditioned to elevate our opinion of him/her. But recently we’ve seen proof that the unfit and potentially corrupt get jobs as judges, too.
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Another snowstorm? Why that seems almost criminal. Read more →
There’s nothing wrong with nabbing drug traffickers through probable cause, of course, but the cases highlight how easy it is to obtain it when an officer is looking for a reason to pull someone over who doesn’t look quite right. Sometimes the police are right; sometimes they’re not. Read more →
A divided Minnesota Supreme Court has ruled that a Minneapolis firefighter can sue for discrimination under the state’s Human Rights Act because the department refused to allow him to wear tennis shoes because of an injury.
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There’s a lot to learn from the case of Greg Bowe, 54, of Williston, N.D., but it all boils down basically to this: don’t threaten to kill the jury before they decide whether you’re guilty. Read more →
The Supreme Court, like many states, put a provision in its rules that guarantees we often won’t see coverage; it gave attorneys for both sides the right to object. If one side objects, the cameras are banned. End of story.
That’s what happened Monday. Read more →
A student in California is protesting her high school’s refusal to allow her to wear her MAGA hat. The news here, of course, is that the high school kids may actually be motivated by her complaint to read and study the U.S. Constitution. Read more →
Today’s tweet from the Minnesota Department of Public Safety — and the accompanying picture of Megan Goeltz — is about as infuriating as it gets.
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The mounted unit patrols the State Fair, street festivals and the cities parks. But the city needs to reassign the officers for a crackdown on distracted driving.
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Nathan Kinsey was fired in 2016 because of the confrontation, which was videotaped and spread by social media. The city said he didn’t report his use of force. Read more →
Laura Berg, 34, of Fergus Falls, Minn., is lucky to be alive. Jordan L. Paulus, 21, of East Bethel, is lucky she’s not going to prison for being on her cellphone when she should’ve been paying attention to driving when she plowed into Berg, who was on a road crew, putting her in a coma for two months. Read more →
There is nothing better in the local newspaper — in this case, the Star Tribune Sunday edition — than the tales of the local gendarmes.
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It’s all good now between Max and the Madison (Wis.) Police Department, owing to the power of apology.
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The New Hampshire Supreme Court has spoken. Women who go topless at the beach are not protected by the First Amendment.
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