Candice's News Log

Buggy firewood
By Candice Dehnbostel

Agriculture officials in Minnesota and Wisconsin warned Wednesday some firewood sold at Menards may contain emerald ash borers, bugs which have killed more than 20 million trees in other areas, reported the Pioneer Press.

Thousands of bundles of Taylors Wood Products Inc. firewood came from infested and quarantined trees in Illinois, according to WEAU 13. The U.S. Department of Agriculture has issued a national recall on the firewood, but told consumers to burn the wood immediately.

Emerald ash borers, which are green beetles as adults, are almost 100 percent fatal to all varieties of ash when they are larvae, reported The Associated Press.

Posted by Candice Dehnbostel at 12:12 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Dead soldier
By Candice Dehnbostel

U.S. Army Sgt. Joshua A. Schmit was laid to rest Wednesday in his hometown of Willmar after being killed by a roadside bomb near Fallujah in Iraq, reported the West Central Tribune. He was 26.

Schmit died ten days before his tour of duty was to end, according to KARE 11. He was the 58th Minnesotan to die in the war in Iraq.

During his funeral, Schmit was posthumously awarded the Bronze Star, Purple Heart, Combat Action Badge, Iraq War Campaign ribbon and Meritorious Service Award, according to The Associated Press.

Posted by Candice Dehnbostel at 10:21 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Candice Dehnbostel

More workplace raids and door-to-door searches for illegal immigrants are planned in Minnesota after an increase in the Immigration and Customs Enforcement offices budget, reported The Associated Press.

The agency’s national funding for detention and removal of illegal immigrants increased from $1.6 billion in 2006 to $3.8 billion in 2007, reported The Associated Press.

The agency’s regional office in Bloomington, Minn., will be able to hire more agents, plus buy vehicles and computers because of the budget increase, reported the Star Tribune. The Bloomington office covers Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, Iowa and Nebraska.

The Bloomington office arrested 690 people in the past six months, compared to 455 people last year, reported the Star Tribune. The rise in arrests is due to more agents recently hired

Posted by Candice Dehnbostel at 9:45 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Candice Dehnbostel
A 16-year-old boy was fatally shot Sunday on a Metro Transit bus in St. Paul, reported Fox 9 News.

Earl Freeman was shot in the chest allegedly by Jerome Pablo Cross, reported the Star Tribune. Cross reportedly leaned into the rear side door of the Route 74 bus and fired at Freeman.

Police used bus security camera recordings to identify Cross, according to the Star Tribune.

Cross has been charged with second-degree murder, according to Minnesota Public Radio.

Posted by Candice Dehnbostel at 9:40 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Candice Dehnbostel

A brothel house run by young womenwas busted after advertising on the website Craigslist.com to sell sex, said Brooklyn Park police, according to the Star Tribune.

At least eight women were prostituting out of the house in the 8300 block of Idaho Avenue North, which is across the streat from the Little Hands Daycare Center, reported WCCO.

Rochelle A. Persaud, 19, the brothel’s alleged madam, was charged Monday with two counts of solicitation, inducement and promotion of prostitution. Another three women were arrested also, including a 16-year-old girl, but they were not charged, police said, according to the Star Tribune.

An undercover police officer busted the prostitution house, reported KARE 11.

If convicted of both counts, Persaud could face up to 35 years in prison and a $70,000 fine, reported WCCO. http://wcco.com/crime/local_story_100124538.html

Posted by Candice Dehnbostel at 9:42 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Candice Dehnbostel

A record seizure of marijuana in Dakota County, with a street value of over $700,000, led to a criminal prosecution, said County Attorney James Backstrom, according to WCCO.

Timothy James O'Brien, 57, of Rosemount, Minn. was stopped by police April 4 in Arizona, according to the Pioneer Press, and the Navajo County Drug Task Force seized 350 pounds of pot. O’Brien was driving to his contact in Minnesota, reported the Pioneer Press.

Jamie Eugene Bannochie Dalton, 31, of Burnsville, Minn. was O’Brien’s contact, according to FOX 9 News. He paid O’Brien $2,000 for transporting the marijuana.

Dalton is charged with two counts of conspiracy to commit controlled substance crime and one count of conspiracy to import controlled substances across state borders, according to FOX 9 News.

Posted by Candice Dehnbostel at 9:36 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Candice Dehnbostel

A high school senior who signed up for the Minnesota Army National Guard was discharged after challenging military recruiters on his front lawn, reported the Pioneer Press.

Leo Valle enlisted when he was a 17-year-old junior at Simley High School in Inver Grove Heights, according to the Star Tribune.

Valle’s parents, who are legal immigrants from El Salvador, said they could not read the forms they were signing for his enlistment, reported The Associated Press.

Lt. Kevin Olson, the state National Guard spokesman, said last year that Guard members told Valle if he didn't go to basic training, he would be violating his contractual duty, reported the Star Tribune. Valle was never threatened with civil police action or jail, Olson said.

Posted by Candice Dehnbostel at 8:26 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Candice Dehnbostel

The two Red Lake, Minn., brothers found in First Thunders Lake died from accidental drowning, said a medical examiner's interim autopsy report Tuesday from the FBI, according to the Star Tribune.

Tristan White, 4, and Avery Stately, 2, were found covered in ice in the lake Sunday, according to the Pioneer Press.

The two boys disappeared while playing outside their home on the Red Lake Indian Reservation last fall, reported KARE 11.

Posted by Candice Dehnbostel at 8:06 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Candice Dehnbostel

A dead infant was recovered Monday from the backwaters of the Mississippi River by two marina workers near Treasure Island Resort & Casino, reported the Star Tribune.

Investigators said the 7-pound, 21-inch newborn girl with long black hair could have been floating in the river anywhere from a day to six months, according to the Pioneer Press.

Goodhue County Police are looking for the baby’s mother, reported KARE 11, and DNA tests were done to determine if the newborn is related to two other babies found in the river in 1999 and 2003.

Posted by Candice Dehnbostel at 1:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Candice Dehnbostel

The Minnesota DFL headquarters in St. Paul was burglarized Tuesday night or Wednesday morning, reported the Pioneer Press.

The DFL’s interim communications director, Nick Kimball, said someone crawled through a window and stole a laptop from executive director Andrew O’Leary’s office between 6:30 p.m. Tuesday and 6:45 a.m. Wednesday, reported the Star Tribune.

Kimball said the intruder did not access any donor information, according to The Associated Press.

Another laptop was stolen in the middle of night between March 17 and 18, reported The Associated Press, during a previous break-in.

Posted by Candice Dehnbostel at 1:14 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Candice Dehnbostel

The man who hit and dragged a St. Paul girl with his van was sentenced Wednesday to 23 months in prison, according to the Star Tribune.

Mauricio Sanchez continued to drive southbound on Robert St. after hitting 11-year-old Gladys Reyes with his Mazda van in January, reported KSTP. Reyes was dragged down the street by the van, according to KSTP.

Reyes lost her right arm and much of her right leg in the accident, according to the Pioneer Press.

Posted by Candice Dehnbostel at 11:10 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Candice Dehnbostel

A 25-year-old Minneapolis man was charged Wednesday with second-degree murder when a 5-week-old boy died from blunt force head injuries, reported The Associated Press.

Daniel Leikas, the infant’s caregiver, became frustrated with the baby, who had been crying and fussing, reported the Pioneer Press. A criminal complaint states Leikas told police he lifted the boy over his head and hurled him into a car seat, according to the Pioneer Press.

Leikas appeared in court Thursday for the charges, according to the Star Tribune, and he was ordered not have contact with the baby's mother, Zonebia Benson-Winden.

Posted by Candice Dehnbostel at 10:47 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Candice Dehnbostel

Minnesota companies are leading the nation in offering consumer-driven health plans to employees, a new study released Thursday said, according to the Associated Press.

Benefits consultant Watson Wyatt Worldwide, who conducted the study, found more than 50 percent of large employers in Minnesota offered consumer-driven health plans, compared with 38 percent in the rest of the nation, reported the Associated Press.

Many employers intend to add consumer-driven plans to their business benefits, aiming to control their company's health care costs, reported the Star Tribune. But plans can combine high deductibles with health savings and health reimbursement accounts, making employees pay larger portions of the bill.

Enrollment in consumer-driven plans is about 8 percent throughout the nation, according to the Star Tribune. Minnesota enrollment is slightly higher.

Posted by Candice Dehnbostel at 11:45 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Candice Dehnbostel

A St. Paul 17-year-old opened a gift wrapped box and found her dog’s severed head inside, reported the Pioneer Press.

The Australian shepherd mix named Chevy disappeared about a month before owner Crystal Brown received the box, according to United Press International, so Brown put up fliers and visited an animal shelter in St. Paul looking for the dog.

A reward of up to $2,500 is being offered from the Humane Society of the United States for information leading to an arrest and conviction in the case, reported the Associated Press, along with a "Justice for Chevy Fund" where people can make donations.

Posted by Candice Dehnbostel at 11:43 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Candice Dehnbostel

“Materials of concern� were found Tuesday at a south Minneapolis building after leads developed in a police raid of a home in Bloomington Monday, reported the Associated Press.

The building belongs to the wife of Terry Lee Dahlen, the man arrested after the Bloomington raid, according to the Star Tribune.
Military-grade ammunition, including detonation cords, firearms and explosive materials, was found at the building, reported the Star Tribune, though most of the guns were owned legally.

A self-made silencer, around a dozen semiautomatic weapons and possible bomb materials were found at Dahlen’s Bloomington home, according to the Pioneer Press.

Posted by Candice Dehnbostel at 3:41 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Candice Dehnbostel

Non-lethal firearms that look like the real thing will no longer be allowed on the streets of St. Paul the City Council unanimously decided Wednesday, according to the Star Tribune.

The ban does not include obvious toys or water pistols, reported the Pioneer Press, but carrying real-looking pellet guns or Airsoft guns will result in a misdemeanor charge.

The fake guns have been mistaken by police for real ones, causing cities in Oregon, Texas, California, Michigan and New York to either implement a ban or move closer to prohibiting replica guns, according to USA Today.

Posted by Candice Dehnbostel at 3:38 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Candice Dehnbostel

Minnesota was the first state to adopt a water use compact Tuesday after Gov. Tim Pawlenty signed the legislation, according to the Associated Press.

The Great Lakes-St. Lawrence River Basin Water Resources Compact is meant to establish stricter standards on water usage if passed by the eight states and two Canadian provinces surrounding the Great Lakes, according to the Minnesota Daily.

The compact would also launch water-conservation and water-efficiency programs, reported the Pioneer Press.

Posted by Candice Dehnbostel at 2:17 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Candice Dehnbostel

Minnesotan smokers will keep paying the 75-cent-per-pack health impact fee after the U.S. Supreme Court refused Tuesday to hear cigarette company Philip Morris' case, reported the Associated Press.

Cigarette manufacturers at the state court level claimed the fee violated a 1998 setttlement that paid the state of Minnesota to compensate health care costs related to tobacco, according to the Star Tribune.

The state Supreme Court ruled the fee did not pertain to companies, but instead smokers who are not protected from further fees, according to the Pioneer Press.

Posted by Candice Dehnbostel at 2:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Candice Dehnbostel

A man convicted of beating to death a financial services manager in Minneapolis in 2005 was sentenced Monday to more than 16 years in prison.

Brian Kidd Trimble was convicted last month of second-degree unintentional murder and first-degree manslaughter in the death of Thomas Dahl, reported WCCO.

The sentence of 16 years and three months given by District Judge Gary Larson was at the midpoint of sentencing guidelines for a defendant with Trimble's background, according to the Pioneer Press.

Trimble is an “admitted thief and crackhead,� according to the Star Tribune.

Posted by Candice Dehnbostel at 3:47 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Candice Dehnbostel

The Minnesota flu death count rose to five Tuesday, claiming a 44-year-old and an 8-year-old, according to WCCO.

Barry Delude, a 20-year veteran of the Minneapolis Fire Department, did not get a flu shot, according to the Pioneer Press, and went into the hospital Sunday.

Chase VanGuilder did have a flu shot, but suffered from other medical problems that lowers the vaccine’s effectiveness, reported the Star Tribune.

Posted by Candice Dehnbostel at 3:44 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Candice Dehnbostel

Two children died from the flu, reported the Minnesota Department of Health Thursday.

The latest deaths included an 8-year-old and a 17-month-old. Both were from the Twin Cities area. Last week another 8-year-old in Ramsey County died of the flu, according to the Pioneer Press.

State officials maintain this strain of the flu virus is not more dangerous than usual, reported the Star Tribune. None of the children that died were vaccinated.

The number of school influenza outbreaks has jumped this year. The State Health Department reported 224 outbreaks, compared to 199 last season, according to KARE 11.

Posted by Candice Dehnbostel at 6:48 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Candice Dehnbostel

The convicted kidnapper and killer of college student Dru Sjodin was sentenced to death by lethal injection Thursday, reported the Pioneer Press.

Alfonso Rodriguez received the death penalty from U.S. District Judge Ralph Erickson. The judge denied the motion for a new trial, though Rodriguez’s lawyers are making appeals. He could stay on death row for several years, according to the Star Tribune.

Rodriguez will be moved to a federal prison in Terre Haute, Ind. in a matter of days, according to authorities.

Posted by Candice Dehnbostel at 4:21 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Candice Dehnbostel

Doctors’ offices were prompted to schedule a flu shot clinic tomorrow after an 8-year-old St. Paul boy died from the virus.

Children’s Hospital in St. Paul arranged the special clinic for children 6 months and older and their parents, according to the Star Tribune.

Hundreds of parents swamped local health centers yesterday concerned if symptoms their children had could be from the flu and wondering where they could get vaccinated, reported the Pioneer Press.

KARE 11 stated the State Health Department received 100 phone calls and Children’s Hospitals in Minneapolis and St. Paul both reported about 50 queries.

Posted by Candice Dehnbostel at 8:14 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Candice Dehnbostel

A statewide smoking ban is gaining momentum after its first legislative committee meeting Thursday.

The ban would be effective in most bars, private clubs and restaurants beginning in August. Supporters of the ban said employees of restaurants and bars, along with patrons, will avoid the dangers of secondhand smoke, according to the St. Paul Pioneer Press.
the Star Tribune is reporting several owners in the food and beverage industry oppose the ban. They said they want to be allowed to install ventilation systems to alleviate secondhand smoke.

The ban would replace existing counties’ and cities’ restrictions, reported the Star Tribune

Posted by Candice Dehnbostel at 7:22 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)