Bob CollinsUntil today, few people likely thought of a sanitation worker as a victim of the Jamar Clark shooting in Minneapolis in November 2015. But today’s City Pages article on what happened to one of them — Alan Ditty — is a disturbing piece of journalism.
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MPR News Reflections and observations on the news
Crime and Justice
Lionel Lopez broke into a Willmar motel room in November 2015 while its occupant — a co-worker — was taking a shower. Lopez swiped a cellphone and a wallet.
Is that burglary?
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Sgt. Sylvia Maurstad must have made some enemies in the Roseau area over the years.
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In 2013, David Riggs was on his scooter near his Oakdale home when he was struck and killed by a driver on Helmo Avenue who was his sending his third text in a little over three blocks. Like many families, Peggy and Craig Riggs have gone public with their grief, hoping to reach people who Read more →
If not for people like Joe Crowley, the Catholic Church’s chronic problem of sexual abuse might never have found its believers.
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You have to really hate somebody or something to wipe out trees planted at a veteran’s memorial project. But, suddenly, destroying trees is a “thing” now. Read more →
At a red light on Wednesday, Moorhead police officers looked out of a bus and saw not one, not two, not three, but four different drivers taking the opportunity to do a little texting.
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Someone has been tearing down and burning rainbow flags in the Wisconsin river town. But they’re going back up faster and more plentiful. Read more →
Don’t steal candy from an amusement park near Toronto. The cops will go to DEFCON 1. Read more →
Bottom line? If you’ve got a past you don’t want dredged up, get off the plane.
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The mother and grandparents of a Montgomery, Minn., woman has been charged with falsely reporting her ‘missing,’ the Mankato Free Press reports. Read more →
The Supreme Court has held that asking someone for a urine sample is a search and, therefore, needs a warrant from a judge.
What happens if a person can’t or won’t provide a sample even with a warrant?
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The defense raises the obvious question: Isolated from significant discipline, what’s to prevent a cop in St. Paul from doing the same thing in the future? Read more →
Nicole LaPoint argued discrimination after an orthodontist pulled a job offer to her after learning she was two months pregnant and hoped to take maternity time. The orthodontist argued the amount of time off was the concern. Justices today said it’s only discrimination under state law if LaPoint could prove she lost the job because she was pregnant. Read more →
There was a time — a long time ago — when packages wouldn’t be delivered without a signature. If you weren’t home, you made a deal with the neighbors and left a note for the delivery person. Back then, there weren’t people like this woman driving around neighborhoods, as she did this week in St. Paul’s Como Park neighborhood, stalking the delivery truck. Read more →