Minnesota Today

Sen. Amy Klobuchar says she hopes to steer federal money to Beltrami County for storm aid

Sen. Amy Klobuchar says she will work to steer federal money to Beltrami County following severe storms. She says even though the Federal Emergency Management Agency determined the damage was not extensive enough to warrant federal disaster aid, there are other things that can be done in Washington to help the area.Forecasters continue to monitor the potential for another round of Canadian wildfire smoke to affect Minnesota this weekend.Prosecutors are seeking an aggravated sentence for a former jail nurse charged in an inmate's death.This is an MPR News Evening update, hosted by Emily Reese. Theme music is by Gary Meister.  Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube or RSS. 

Minnesota mother remains in ICE custody despite judge’s release order

Vance Boelter, the man accused of killing former DFL House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark, and shooting and wounding State Senator John Hoffman and his wife Yvette, has pleaded not guilty to all charges. Wearing a jail uniform, Boelter stood beside his attorney in court yesterday. Assistant U.S. Attorney Harry Jacobs said the government is sifting through hundreds of gigabytes and tens of thousands of pages of evidence.A Minnesota mother remains in ICE custody despite a judge’s order for her release. The family members of people in Minnesota prisons say the state is moving too slowly in creating a new system to allow incarcerated people to use tablet computers. The tablets are used to message with family members, access educational content and play media like music. Business and home owners along the planned Blue Line light rail extension say they have not been able to access millions of dollars anti-displacement funding allocated by the state legislature. Nonprofit and public media officials are expressing concerns over a bill passed by Congress last month. They spoke about the fallout during a listening session put on by DFL Congresswoman Betty McCollum yesterday. The two left lanes of 35W will be closed in both directions between Roseville and Lino Lakes this weekend. That means long stretches of the highway will be reduced to a single lane in each direction. The closures begin tonight and run through early Monday.

Man charged with shooting Minnesota lawmakers pleads not guilty

The man charged with killing the top Democrat in the Minnesota House and her husband, and wounding a state senator and his wife, pleaded not guilty during his arraignment in federal court Thursday. The plea during the brief hearing in federal court in Minneapolis was expected; an attorney for Vance Boelter had said last month that he planned to plead not guilty.An MPR News investigation has found that several Minneapolis police trainers were accused of using excessive force in civil lawsuits the city settled before they received their current assignments.A Minnesota state senator says he'll move to regulate so-called ghost guns next year following a court ruling that altered the landscape on the firearms.This is an MPR News Evening update, hosted by Emily Reese. Theme music is by Gary Meister.  Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube or RSS. 

Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty not running for reelection in 2026

Metro Transit officials are recommending the closure of the Northstar Commuter Rail in early January. A key player in the Feeding Our Future fraud scheme was sentenced yesterday to 28 years in prison.New security measures are in place at the state Capitol. The number of doors through which the public can enter the capitol is now limited to just two entrances, including just one of the three doors at the top of the capitol stairs. Visitors will encounter more security guards at each of those entrances as well. Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty will not run for reelection in 2026. In a statement, Moriarty said she is choosing to focus on reforms and wants to spend the next 17 months "running the office, rather than running for office." Moriarty was elected in 2022 following Mike Freeman's retirement from the position after 24 years of service.The city of St. Paul says Mayor Melvin Carter’s 2026 budget address, originally scheduled for next week, has been postponed. That’s due to the city’s ongoing efforts to respond to a cyberattack on its computer systems. Some city services, including online bill payments and public internet access in libraries, remain unavailable. The city says the mayor’s budget address will be rescheduled for sometime in September.

Minn. Supreme Court throws state's gun serial number law into question

The Minnesota Supreme Court created doubt Wednesday over the viability of a decades-old state law that makes it a crime to possess certain firearms that lack serial numbers. In overturning a lower court ruling, a majority of justices on the state’s highest court stopped short of invalidating a 1994 law entirely on constitutional grounds. But the split ruling could make it harder for prosecutors to bring the gun charges as they have in hundreds of cases per year.New security measures went into place Wednesday at the Minnesota Capitol in St. Paul.Former Minnesota Sen. Justin Eichorn appeared in court Wednesday. He faces charges of soliciting a minor for sex, after being arrested in March in a Bloomington sting operation.This is an MPR News Evening update, hosted by Emily Reese. Theme music is by Gary Meister.  Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube or RSS.