HOUSTON (AP) – The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services says it’s clearing mold from a South Texas facility that will soon house up to 1,300 migrant children. HHS said in a statement Wednesday that it was working quickly to open the facility at Carrizo Springs, Texas, at the site of a former “man camp” for oilfield workers. In…
BRAINERD, Minn. (AP) – Federal officials are weighing testimony from the only public hearing in the country on the government’s latest attempt to take gray wolves off the endangered and threatened species list. The proposal would return management of the predators to the states, potentially subjecting them to hunting and trapping. In most states it’s illegal to kill a wolf…
DETROIT LAKES, Minn. (AP) – Authorities are looking for the driver of a car that struck and killed a man operating a utility vehicle in northern Minnesota. The 27-year-old man was struck in Becker County Monday night in Maple Grove Township and was found unresponsive. He was taken to Sanford Hospital in Fargo, North Dakota where he died on Tuesday….
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) – A federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit filed by nine former University of Minnesota football players who claimed their rights were violated after a woman alleged she was the victim of a gang rape in 2016. The Star Tribune reports that U.S. District Judge Donovan Frank found no merit to claims that the men were subjected to…
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The parents of a 5-year-old Minnesota boy who was thrown from a third-floor balcony at the Mall of America say their son remains in intensive care due to severe complications from the April attack. In an update on their GoFundMe page Tuesday, the parents of the victim, identified only as Landen, say he has had more than…
HOYT LAKES, Minn. (AP) – The Minnesota Court of Appeals has ordered a hearing on alleged irregularities in how Minnesota regulators dealt with federal regulators over a water pollution permit for the planned PolyMet copper-nickel mine in northern Minnesota. The appeals court on Tuesday ordered a lower court to hold an evidentiary hearing as soon as practical. The court must…
ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) – Minnesota’s legislative auditor will investigate concerns over how state regulators handled an important water quality permit for the planned PolyMet copper-nickel mine. Rep. Rick Hansen, who chairs the Legislative Audit Commission and a House environment committee, says the auditor’s review will start immediately. An e-mail leaked last week indicates a top Minnesota Pollution Control Agency…
Keith EllisonST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) – Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison says he’ll defend state laws restricting abortion against a legal challenge despite his strong personal support for abortion rights. Ellison told a forum in Fergus Falls last week his job is to defend Minnesota’s laws regardless of his personal opinions. The Star Tribune reports his comments marked the Democratic…
MADISON, Wis. (AP) – The state Supreme Court is reversing itself and allowing oversight of public school policy to shift from the state superintendent to the governor. A 2017 law dubbed the REINS Act requires state agencies to get permission from the governor and the state Department of Administration, which the governor controls, before drafting new policies and regulations. The…
MADISON, Wis. (AP) – Gov. Tony Evers has signed into law a bill that eliminates a tax benefit for companies that move out of Wisconsin. The measure he signed Monday targets tax deductions businesses claim when they move. Under current law, a business may deduct from its income or tax liability all expenses paid to move from one location to…
(Photo credit: Norm Coleman/Facebook) ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) – Former U.S. Sen. Norm Coleman says he’s OK after a boat crash on a northern Minnesota lake. Coleman posted on his Facebook page that he was fishing on Lake Ada near Park Rapids on Saturday when another boat broadsided his. Coleman wrote that he leapt into the water right before the…
MADISON, Wis. (AP) – Gov. Tony Evers has signed into law a measure supported by mega-liquor store Total Wine & More that allows for larger quantities of liquor to be sold at a single transaction at certain stores. The measure Evers signed Monday pertains to liquor stores and other places that sell alcohol for consumption off premises, but that also…
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — The state Supreme Court is poised to release a ruling on whether the governor or the state schools superintendent controls Wisconsin school policy. Republicans passed a law dubbed the REINS Act in 2017 that requires all state agencies to get the governor’s permission before writing regulations. The Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty filed a lawsuit…
FRIENDSHIP, Wis. (AP) – Authorities say they’re suspending diving operations in the search for an 11-year-old boy in the Wisconsin River in Wisconsin Dells but will continue daily water searchers. The Adams County Sheriff’s Office has been leading the search for Jamison Owen Dean Miller of rural Grand Marsh since he went underwater on June 18 and didn’t resurface. WMTV-TV…
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) – Starting July 1, Minnesotans who rape their spouses finally can be charged with sexual assault. Wage theft becomes a crime. And drug manufacturers will help shoulder the costs of the opioid epidemic. Those are some new Minnesota laws taking effect July 1 along with the state’s new $48 billion budget. Minnesota will have what sponsors say is…
(AP Photo)MADISON, Wis. (AP) – Wisconsin’s Democratic Gov. Tony Evers has vetoed four abortion bills passed by the Republican-controlled Legislature. One bill Evers vetoed Friday would have imposed criminal penalties on doctors who fail to give medical care in the extremely rare circumstance where a baby is born alive following an abortion attempt. Other vetoed bills would have cut off…
ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) – A federal jury has awarded $585,000 to a police officer who alleged that 58 fellow officers from the Minneapolis Police Department broke a federal privacy law by searching for her driver’s license data without a lawful purpose. Attorneys for Amy Krekelberg say the officers searched for her data 74 times, accessing information including her photograph,…
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) – Strong winds, heavy rain, hail and at least one tornado damaged a turkey barn and outbuildings, brought down tree branches and flooded streets in southwestern Minnesota. There were no reports of injuries when the severe weather swept through Redwood, Brown and Watonwan counties Thursday evening. Watonwan County sheriff’s officials say a large turkey barn near St. James…
MADISON, Wis. (AP) – Conservatives who control the Wisconsin Supreme Court have sided with Republicans legislators in saying they legally called a lame-duck legislative session to pass laws limiting the powers of the new Democratic governor and attorney general. The court ruled 4-3 Friday along ideological lines. The majority says the Wisconsin Constitution gives the Legislature the authority to decide…
(Jeff Morehead/The Chronicle-Tribune via AP, File)MADISON, Wis. (AP) – Wisconsin’s unemployment rate remains at a record low. The state Department of Workforce Development reported Thursday that Wisconsin’s unemployment rate for May was 2.8%, the same as in April. That matched the record low of 2.8% reached in April 2018. The state gained 1,800 private sector jobs between April and May….
MADISON, Wis. (AP) – The state Assembly has approved two bills that would stiffen drunken driving penalties. The first measure would require anyone arrested for a first offense to appear in court. Currently a first offense is a civil violation, not a criminal one, and people can skip their initial court appearance. The bill also would eliminate provisions in state…
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) – The Wilderness Society is suing the Trump administration to try to force the release of documents on its decision to lift restrictions on mining upstream from the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness in northern Minnesota. The Trump administration last year canceled a proposed 20-year ban on mining in the Boundary Waters watershed and an associated environmental study…
WASHINGTON (AP) – A new study says about once in every six times someone is taken to an emergency room or checks in to a hospital, the treatment is followed by a “surprise” medical bill. The report Thursday from the nonpartisan Kaiser Family Foundation also finds that depending on what state you live in, the odds can be much higher….
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) – The Minnesota State college system’s board of trustees has voted to raise tuition by 3% this fall as enrollment declines. The Star Tribune reports that the board of trustees approved a $2.1 billion budget for the 37 universities and community colleges in the system, which has lost almost a fifth of its enrollment over the past decade….
MADISON, Wis. (AP) – New University of Wisconsin System regents President Drew Petersen wants to focus on student internships and counseling. Petersen said in telephone interview that he wants to expand student internship opportunities, particularly in undergraduate research. He added he wants to invest more in student support services and counseling, saying kids are under more stress than ever before….
(Katelyn Planka via AP) UPDATE: (AP) – A county coroner official says two people are dead after a semi crashed on an interstate in southeastern Wisconsin, exploding and setting fire to other vehicles. A WTMJ-TV photographer who witnessed the crash says the semi jumped the median on I-94 about 11 a.m. Wednesday. The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel reports the accident happened near…
MADISON, Wis. (AP) – The state Supreme Court is ready to hand down a ruling in a lawsuit challenging Republican’s lame-duck laws limiting Democratic Gov. Tony Evers and Attorney General Josh Kaul’s powers. The court plans to release its decision Friday morning. The ruling will settle a lawsuit brought by a group of liberal-leaning organizations that contends the Legislature convened…
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) – A figure skating coach has pleaded guilty in Hennepin County to sexually abusing a student. Forty-eight-year-old Thomas Incantalupo, of St. Louis Park, entered the plea to two counts of criminal sexual conduct Tuesday for abusing the girl beginning when she was 14 years old in 2015 and continuing for two years. The Hennepin County Attorney’s Office says…
TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. (AP) – The eight states and two Canadian provinces in the Great Lakes region have agreed to cooperate on enforcing invasive species laws. They will share information and team up to investigate suspected violations, including possession and transport of banned exotic species such as Asian carp . An organization representing the region’s governors and premiers announced Monday…
(AP Photo/Jim Mone, File) MINNEAPOLIS (AP) – A leaked email has raised new questions about how state and federal regulators handled a major permit for the planned PolyMet copper-nickel mine in northeastern Minnesota. The e-mail asks Environmental Protection Agency officials not to file written comments on the water quality permit during Minnesota’s public comment period, which had the effect of…
(AP Photo/Matt Rourke) PHILADELPHIA (AP) — U.S. authorities seized more than $1 billion worth of cocaine Tuesday from a ship at a Philadelphia port, calling it one of the largest drug busts in American history. The U.S. attorney’s office in Philadelphia announced the massive bust on Twitter on Tuesday afternoon, saying law enforcement agents seized about 16.5 tons of cocaine…
(Richard Tsong-Taatarii/Star Tribune via AP File)MINNEAPOLIS (AP) – Enbridge Energy’s plan to replace its aging Line 3 crude oil pipeline across northern Minnesota has hit another obstacle. Earlier this month a court said the project’s environmental impact statement failed to address the possibility of an oil spill into the Lake Superior watershed. Now the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency and Department…
MILWAUKEE (AP) – Two off-duty police officers have been killed in separate incidents in southeastern Wisconsin. Racine police say Officer John Hetland was fatally shot Monday about 9:40 p.m. when he tried to intervene in an armed robbery at Teezers bar. And Milwaukee police say Officer Kou (koo) Her died early Tuesday when he was struck by a speeding driver…
ST. PAUL, Minn.-Gov. Tim Walz will temporarily transfer his powers and duties to Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan while he undergoes knee surgery Thursday. The governor’s office says Walz will be under general anesthetic while doctors repair a torn meniscus in his left knee – a common injury in runners. As required by state law, the governor sent letters Monday to…
MILWAUKEE-Milwaukee treasurer’s office records show Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes is delinquent on property taxes. Deputy City Treasurer Jim Klajbor said Friday that Barnes, a Democrat, has failed to pay $2,225.43 in property taxes, interest and penalties for his condominium. Barnes told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, which first reported the delinquency , that he’s paying the delinquent taxes in an installment…
NEW YORK (AP) _ Democratic presidential candidate Amy Klobuchar says she would support impeachment proceedings against President Donald Trump “beginning now.” The Minnesota senator’s comment to CNN Friday followed Trump’s statement this week that he’d take information from a foreign power that offered dirt on an opponent. Klobuchar says “it’s illegal” to take something of value from a foreign country…
WASHINGTON, D.C.-According to a memo from the Office of the Inspector General with the Environmental Protection Agency, an audit is now underway regarding a complaint connected with Polymet Mining Company’s National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit. The objective is to determine whether the EPA followed appropriate Clean Water Act and NPDES regulations for the Polymet permit approved in 2018 in…
ST. PAUL, Minn.-St. Paul’s police chief has fired five officers for allegedly failing to intervene in an assault at a business. Police Chief Todd Axtell said Thursday that officers are expected to intervene when a violent act occurs in their presence and to tell the truth. Axtell says the community “deserves to know that its St. Paul police officers will…
WASHINGTON-White House press secretary Sarah Sanders will be leaving the Trump administration at the end of the month. President Donald Trump announced the news on Twitter Wednesday. He says Sanders will be returning to her home state of Arkansas and has not immediately named a successor. Sanders is one of the president’s closest and most trusted White House aides and…
MINNEAPOLIS-Environmental Protection Agency documents show that its staffers were critical of how Minnesota regulators drafted a key permit for the planned PolyMet copper-nickel mine. And they show the officials concluded the permit would violate federal law because it lacked specific water pollution limits. The EPA released the documents after a court challenge by WaterLegacy and other groups. WaterLegacy attorney Paula…
MEMPHIS, Tenn.- The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation has confirmed the identity of a man killed by a federal fugitive task force as Brandon Webber, a 20-year-old black man. The TBI says Webber was shot by federal marshals who were trying to arrest him on multiple felony warrants Wednesday evening. The agency says Webber got into a vehicle and then rammed…
MADISON, Wis.-Republicans who control the Legislature’s finance committee are planning to add a roughly $300 million income tax cut to Democratic Gov. Tony Evers’ state budget. Committee co-chairs John Nygren and Alberta Darling told reporters Thursday that Republicans plan to insert language in the budget that will reduce the two lowest tax brackets. They also said that they plan to…
ST. PAUL, Minn.-Gov. Tim Walz says he’s open to calling a special session to help diabetics who can’t afford the cost of insulin, but lawmakers must first work out a deal. Walz made his comments Wednesday after a discussion with diabetics, advocates and medical professionals. A measure that would have established an emergency insulin program had broad support during the…
ST. PAUL, Minn.-President Donald Trump has approved a major disaster declaration for spring storms and flooding that caused nearly $40 million in damage to infrastructure across Minnesota. Gov. Tim Walz said Wednesday that the declaration will provide federal emergency relief money for 51 Minnesota counties and four tribal governments Walz had requested the federal aid in a letter to Trump…
MINNEAPOLIS-A month after collecting $166,000 in early retirement benefits from the Iron Range Resources and Rehabilitation Board, a veteran staffer is back at work there. Former Deputy Commissioner Brian Hiti volunteered for retirement as part of a restructuring at the development agency. But the Star Tribune reports his retirement didn’t last long. He was back on the payroll a month…
ROSEVILLE, Minn.-A Lyft driver from Coon Rapids says he’ll direct some of his $1 million lottery winnings to the nonprofit he started that provides sustainable access to clean water in Africa. Forty-five-year-old Kodjo Ayewonou won his million in the June 4 Mega Millions drawing with a ticket he bought at a gas station in Eden Prairie. He matched five numbers,…
NASHWAUK, Minn.-A fundraiser has been set up for one of the teens killed in a fatal crash near Nashwauk Saturday. A GoFundMe has been set up for 16-year-old Aiden Hall, who was killed in the crash. The money would be used to help pay for funeral expenses. State Patrol officials say the victims were passengers in a car traveling north…
NEW YORK-The New York Fire Department is responding to a report of a helicopter crash at a building in midtown Manhattan. It does not appear anyone else was on board when the crash occurred at around 2 p.m. other than the pilot. It was not immediately known what type of helicopter was involved. Videos posted by onlookers showed emergency vehicles…
SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic (AP) – Authorities say former Boston Red Sox slugger David Ortiz is hospitalized following surgery for a gunshot wound after being ambushed by a man in a bar in his native Dominican Republic, authorities said. Dominican police officials said Ortiz was at the Dial Bar and Lounge in Santo Domingo around 8:50 p.m. Sunday when the…
MINNEAPOLIS, Minn.-A Minneapolis police officer convicted of murder has been sentenced to a 12-year prison term for the fatal shooting of an unarmed woman who had called 911. A Minnesota jury convicted Mohamed Noor in April of third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter in the July 2017 death of Justine Ruszczyk Damond, a 40-year-old dual citizen of the U.S. and Australia….
