Minneapolis Shooting Suspect Previously Convicted of Stabbing Outside Iron Range Bar

MINNEAPOLIS – The man accused of shooting five people inside a car last week in Minneapolis, was previously convicted of stabbing a man outside of a bar on the Iron Range, court documents show.

James Ortley, the man charged with five counts of murder for a shooting in Minneapolis last week, was previously convicted of stabbing a man in the back outside of a Virginia bar in 2020, court documents show.

According to the 2020 criminal complaint for second-degree assault, the incident occurred outside of the Rainy Lake Saloon in Virginia. A witness told police they saw Ortley and another man “shoving around” the victim. The victim attempted to run but fell, which is when Ortely “pulled him in, and began stabbing him in the back.”

Ortley was a resident of Virginia at the time of the stabbing and lived there as recently as 2023, according to records from his past cases.

On Monday, Ortley made his first appearance in Hennepin County Court, charged with five counts of second-degree murder and one count of a felon in possession of a firearm. The charges stem from last Tuesday’s shooting in Minneapolis, which left four people, including a 17-year-old boy, dead and one woman in critical condition. Ortley is being held on a $2,000,000 bail.