Crime

U.S. Sen. Al Franken introduced legislation Thursday that would encourage states to examine untested rape kits for DNA evidence. The bill would also provide for more health workers trained to administer rape-kit exams, particularly for Native American women.

Minneapolis is the safest city in America, according to Forbes. The ranking was based on crime rates, traffic deaths, workplace fatalities and risk of natural disasters. The Minneapolis metropolitan area ranked in the top 10 nationwide in each of these categories, including the lowest rate of on-the-job deaths.

Akeley is the latest Minnesota city to consider going without its own police in response to declining local-government aid (LGA) and, in some cases, population.

Al Flowers believes the cops are out to get him. The mayoral candidate filed a lawsuit in Hennepin County District Court today alleging that Hennepin County Sheriff’s deputies violated his Constitutional rights while executing a search warrant at an Edina home last month.

There are currently just two Hmong police officers assigned to Minneapolis’ 4th Precinct, both of whom work overnight shifts. North Side residents want at least one Hmong-speaking cop on the day shift to help foster better communications with the Minneapolis Police Department. But achieving that may be harder than it would seem.

In 2005, the Ward Eight city council race was arguably the most hotly contested in Minneapolis. This year five candidates are vying for the post, including incumbent Elizabeth Glidden. Crime and the foreclosure crisis are likely to be the issues foremost on the minds of voters.

Minneapolis Police Chief Tim Dolan was briefed Wednesday on the ongoing investigation into the now defunct Metro Gang Strike Force. Apparently the news was not good. In a statement released afterwards Dolan acknowledged that seven Minneapolis cops are implicated in the probe.

Exactly what criminal use might a street gang have for a wood chipper? And what about a stump grinder? Those were among the questions contemplated by legislators at a hearing Wednesday afternoon scrutinizing the beleaguered — and now defunct — Metro Gang Strike Force.

Why would young Somali men living in Minnesota return to their war-ravaged homeland to wage jihad? That’s the thorny question that’s been debated by the Somali community and federal investigators since the mysterious disappearances of as many as 20 young men surfaced last year.

Ramsey County Attorney Susan Gaertner was in Chicago Friday to receive the “Norman Maleng Minister of Justice Award” from the American Bar Association. The ABA cited Gaertner’s use of DNA evidence to review old cases and efforts to combat domestic violence in bestowing the honor. But not everyone on hand was there to celebrate Gaertner’s [...]