Good morning, and welcome to Wednesday.
The case against three former Minneapolis police officers accused of depriving George Floyd of his right to medical care is set to go to a federal jury today. Thomas Lane, J. Alexander Kueng, and Tou Thao were on the scene of Floyd’s arrest on May 25, 2020, as Derek Chauvin, the senior officer on site, pressed his knee into Floyd’s neck for more than 9 minutes as the man lay handcuffed and face down on the pavement, pleading that he couldn’t breathe. In closing statements Tuesday , prosecutor Manda Sertich told the court the three ex-cops disregarded their training and their duty to intervene to stop Chauvin’s unreasonable use of force to subdue Floyd. Sertich told jurors the defendants did nothing to help Floyd, "contrary to their training, contrary to common sense and contrary to basic human dignity." Defense attorneys for the three men used their closing statements to push back on the idea their clients didn’t do their duty as they knew it.
The special election to fill out the term of the late Rep. Jim Hagedorn will be on Aug. 9 with a possible primary in May. Candidates can file to run beginning next Tuesday, March 1, and filing ends March 15. Republicans apparently won’t be endorsing a candidate, according to a statement issued Tuesday by Republican Party of Minnesota Chair David Hann. “As part of reorganizing our party units due to redistricting following the U.S. Census, last week I dissolved all of our legislative and congressional district party units to prepare for reapportionment. These party units currently have no authority to conduct business and will need to be reconstituted in order to do so,” Hann said, adding that there will be a candidate endorsed for the election in November in the new district. “As part of the reapportionment process, First Congressional District Republicans will have a convention in April and will have the opportunity to endorse a candidate for Congress,” Hann said.
St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter said he is making changes to a rent control measure passed by city voters last year and plans to use federal money to hire more police officers. From the St. Paul Pioneer Press: In a wide-ranging State of the City address delivered on the heels of a fatal shooting on the city’s West Side, St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter said he would install city workers in vacant downtown storefronts to add more eyes on the Skyway system, and accept federal funding to bolster the ranks of the St. Paul Police Department. Carter also said he will present the city council Tuesday with a draft proposal to alter the city’s new rent control ordinance and exempt new residential construction for 15 years. He signaled that further changes are possible. The city, he said, must “assess the impact on small, local landlords, and determine if 3 percent (the cap on annual rent increases) is a long-term fixed target or simply a starting point.”
The transportation committee in the Minnesota Senate wants all of the tax revenue collected from the sale of auto parts to be used to fund road and bridge projects throughout the state, MPR’s Tim Pugmire reports. Sen. Scott Newman, R-Hutchinson, said his plan would generate needed money without raising the gas tax or user fees. The transportation committee held a hearing on the bill Tuesday and advanced it on a 12-0 vote. Newman said it would help businesses and create jobs. “I am asking that the money in our general fund be redirected into transportation, so that transportation has enough money to fulfill the needs of the people of the state of Minnesota for their transportation infrastructure needs,” he said. Lawmakers passed legislation in 2017 that dedicated a portion of the auto parts sales tax to transportation. Newman’s bill would increase that to 100 percent.
A bipartisan push could bring more help to Minnesota entertainment venues still trying to rebound from pandemic disruptions , MPR’s Brian Bakst reported. Music halls and movie theaters that were forced to close during various phases of the COVID-19 fight shared in a special federal grant program. It was aimed at making up for lost revenue and keeping them from closing for good. Rep. Kristin Bahner, DFL-Maple Grove, said the Shuttered Venue Operating Grants were pivotal. “In Minnesota, from Albert Lea to Zumbrota, 204 venues received the SVOG grant to provide the lifeblood they needed when they needed it most,” Bahner said. She has a bill to shield those grants from income taxes. “We are now the only state in the union taxing relief to shuttered venues,” said Rep. Dean Urdahl, R-Grove City, who has authored a similar bill. Both bills got a favorable reception and were held over for potential inclusion in a bigger tax bill. The exemption also has the backing of Gov. Tim Walz.
Royce White announced a run as a Republican in the 5th District. White is a former NBA player who was outspoken about his struggle with anxiety. More recently, he has been a regular guest on ex-Donald Trump adviser Steve Bannon's online shows. In a video announcing his campaign to run against incumbent DFL U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar, he called Omar a “globalist.” “She's a puppet for the establishment,” Royce said. “I'm here to sound the alarm." Read all the way down in the Star Tribune story to get to this: According to public court records, White is the subject of multiple pending civil court proceedings, including six active judgments against him that total nearly $178,000. The cases include failure to pay child support and a recently settled eviction case. While a freshman at the University of Minnesota in 2009, White pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct and theft during a shoplifting incident and scuffle with a guard at the Mall of America. | 