| 05/11/2008 - FATAL WRECK IN INVER GROVE HEIGHTS |
| David Stoeger - KROC News |
| A 20-year-old Nebraska man was killed in a two-vehicle crash in Inver Grove Heights shortly after 11 Saturday morning. The State Patrol reports a vehicle operated by 56-year-old Lynn Johnson of Eagan was southbound on Highway 3 when her vehicle collided head on with a northbound vehicle operated by 23-year-old Matthew Willis of Eagan that skidded across the centerline. A passenger in the Willis vehicle from Hershey, Nebraska was killed in the crash due to internal injuries. His name has not been released. Willis was taken to Regions Hospital in critical condition. Johnson was not seriously injured. |
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| 05/11/2008 - POWERBALL DRAWING FROM 5/10/08 |
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| Powerball numbers for 05/10/2008 are:
07 18 30 41 45 Powerball 6
Powerplay 2
The estimated Grand Prize was $20,000,000 ($9,700,000 cash).
There was no Grand Prize Winner.
The next Powerball drawing will be on Wednesday, May 14th, 2008 with an estimated Grand Prize of $26,000,000 ($12,700,000 cash).
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| 05/11/2008 - AN OPENER TO REMEMBER |
| Minnesota News Network |
| The fishing opener looked a lot like Christmas in parts of northeastern Minnesota yesterday. The National Weather Service in Duluth says a trained spotter reported four inches of snow in Ely. There was one-point-seven inches on the ground north of Virginia and a half inch in a couple other locations. Duluth received a dusting or about three-tenths of an inch. Many Minnesota anglers were fishing for walleye in rainy, cool conditions.
It did not rain at Breezy Point until yesterday afternoon, allowing Governor Tim Pawlenty enough time to reel in a 17-inch walleye. But Lieutenant Governor Carol Molnau won the friendly competition with the first and biggest fish (19 inches). The governor announced that next year's opener is being held in the east metro on White Bear Lake.
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| 05/11/2008 - RACE FOR THE CURE |
| Minnesota News Network |
| Some 50,000 participants were expected at the Mall of American in Bloomington today for the 16th Annual Komen Twin Cities Race for the Cure. The annual Mother's Day event includes a 5K and 1K Run, a 5K and 1K Walk and a 5K Wheelchair Race Proceeds will help uninsured and underinsured women in their fight against breast cancer as well as fund grants for Minnesota breast cancer research teams.
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| 05/11/2008 - NORTHERN MN MAN INJURED IN CABIN EXPLOSION |
| Minnesota News Network |
| A rural Cook man is hospitalized in Duluth after an explosion and fire destroyed his island cabin on Susan Lake. The St. Louis County Sheriff's Office says 50-year-old Walter Lund was trying to light a burner when it happened Saturday morning. Investigators say it appears a broken propane gas line leading into the cabin caused the blast. Lund suffered burns to his body and face. His condition is unknown at this time.
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| 05/10/2008 - TWO KILLED IN HEAD-ON WRECK |
| Kim David/KROC AM News |
| A head-on traffic wreck near Chisago City last night killed both drivers. The State Patrol says an SUV driven by an 18-year old from Shafer, Minnesota crossed the centerline of the road and collided with a semi-truck. Both vehicles burst into flames. The driver of the truck was from Phoenix. The wreck happened around 7:30 on Highway 8. |
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| 05/10/2008 - FINAL BLOW FOR BIG STONE? |
| Kim David/KROC AM News |
| A recommendation from 2 administrative law judges may have killed a proposed coal-fired power plant that would serve parts of Minnesota. The proposed Big Stone 2 plant would be located in South Dakota and some of its electricity would be sent to Minnesota through new transmission lines. The 2 judges last year recommended the lines be built - but have now done a 180. They say they changed their minds because conditions have changed. When they recommended the lines last year, it was expected most of the electricity would be sent to Minnesota. But the Southern Minnesota Municipal Power Agency and another Minnesota utility withdrew from the project last year, meaning less electricity would be needed. The judges now say the utilities still involved in the project have failed to show they can't find less expensive energy sources elsewhere, such as through wind power. The utilities say without the new power plant, they will be forced to buy more electricity from natural gas sources, which will be more expensive. The Minnesota Public Utilities Commission will consider the recommendation next month. |
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| 05/10/2008 - COLD, SNOWY, ICY OPENER |
| Kim David/KROC AM News |
| Some anglers who are in northern Minnesota for this weekend's opener are battling cold weather and in some areas - ice. Temperatures in the northern part of the state were in the 30's this morning and light snow was also being reported but thousands of Minnesotans went out anyway.
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| 05/09/2008 - ICE AN ISSUE ON FISH OPENER FOR THE FIRST TIME IN 12 YEARS |
| Andy Brownell KROC-AM NEWS |
| The State Capitol is expected to be fairly quiet over the weekend, even though the end of the 2008 legislative session is just over a week away. Governor Pawlenty and many state lawmakers are participating in the symbolic start of the summer tourism season in Minnesota...the annual walleye fishing opener. Governor Pawlenty will be trying his luck on a lake near Brainerd, where the Breezy Point resort is hosting the 60th annual Governor's Fishing Opener celebration. The ice on the lakes in that area finally went out about a week ago, but the Department of Natural Resources reports ice could cause problems for anglers on some northern Minnesota lakes this weekend. Officials say the ice out is running about 10 days behind schedule this year. It's the first time in 12 years that Minnesota anglers have had to deal with ice on the fishing opener. |
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| 05/09/2008 - STATE APPEALS COURT TO REVIEW LOCAL JUDGE'S RULING IN SEXUAL PREDATOR COMMITMENT CASE |
| Kim David KROC-AM NEWS |
| A ruling by an Olmsted County judge is headed to the state Appeals Court and depending on how the case is dealt with there, it could have an impact on future civil commitments of sexually dangerous criminals. Earlier this year, Judge Kevin Lund was asked by the Olmsted County Attorney's office to commit convicted sex offender Robert Tolbert to the state's program in St. Peter. While Judge Lund agreed that Tolbert is a sexually dangerous person, he rejected the request and instead ruled Tolbert should return to prison. His decision was based on his conclusion that the state's sex offender treatment programs at St. Peter and Moose Lake are " simply detention facilities " because no one who has been committed has ever been released. In his ruling, Lund noted Tolbert has never completed a sex offender program and that his needs can be met by returning to prison and receiving treatment there. Lund found Tolbert violated his parole by not completing a sex offender treatment program and used that conclusion to order his return to prison. His ruling also orders the state Corrections Department to submit progress reports every 6 months and that Tolbert should be released if he successfully completes his treatment program. The Corrections Department is now asking to join in the appeal of Lund's decision, noting it was not aware of the committment hearing and wasn't represented. The department says the judge had only been asked to rule on the committment petition and had no authority to order Tolbert back to prison. Tolbert was sentenced to prison for a 2001 case involving a Rochester teenager who says he raped her after giving her alcohol and drugs. He was released last year as a level 3 offender but then sent to the St. Peter facility after the committment petition was filed.
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| 05/09/2008 - ANOKA COUNTY MAN ACCUSED OF SEVERELY ABUSING INFANT |
| MetroSource |
| A seven-month old boy is in critical condition with serious head injuries allegedly caused by his mother's boyfriend in their Spring Lake Park apartment. Authorities say charges of first-degree assault and malicious punishment of a child are pending against the 24-year-old man, who is being held in the Anoka County jail. Police say the mother was at work when her boyfriend called for help last evening. At first, he told investigators the child fell off a bed. Police say the suspect eventually admitted he'd become angry and frustrated with the baby's crying and hit him twice on the head. |
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| 05/09/2008 - ANNUAL LETTER CARRIERS' FOOD DRIVE TAKES PLACE SATURDAY |
| Andy Brownell KROC-AM NEWS |
| Rochester letter carriers will be participating in the annual Stamp Out Hunger food drive tomorrow. The Channel One Foodshelf is urging residents to leave donations of non-perishable food items next to their mailboxes, where the letter carriers will pick them up while delivering mail. The most requested items for the drive include boxed dinners, canned tuna, peanut butter, cereal, canned fruit, pasta and rice. Last year, local letter carriers collected 28,630 pounds of food. |
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| 05/09/2008 - NEW U OF M FEE IN TROUBLE |
| Kim David/KROC AM News & Wire Services |
| A plan by the University of Minnesota administration to enact a new student fee is in trouble. A Board of Regents committee has rejected the proposal to begin charging students $100 to help cover the cost of future construction projects. That would be on top of the $50 fee students are being charged for the new football stadium - and the hundreds of dollars in other fees. The U of M is also proposing a 9 1/2-percent tuition increase for the upcoming year, putting it over $10,000. |
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| 05/09/2008 - HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MN ! |
| Minnesota News Network |
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Minnesota is about to celebrate becoming the 32nd state in the Union 150-years ago. Statehood Day festivities begin at 1 p.m. Sunday at the State Capitol building and Minnesota History Center. Governor Tim Pawlenty will speak at the the Capitol event that includes a presentation of colors by 1st Minnesota Regiment, playing of the national anthem and "Minnesota Hail to Thee." A Sesquicentennial Convoy will leave for five honorary capitals chosen by residents last fall. The convoy will make stops next week in Bemidji, Thief River Falls, Detroit Lakes, New Ulm and Winona.
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| 05/09/2008 - MN KIDS PUNISHED FOR NOT STANDING FOR PLEDGE |
| Minnesota News Network |
| Three eighth graders at Dilworth-Glyndon-Felton Junior High in western Minnesota have been suspended for one day after not standing during the pledge of allegiance. The school handbook says all students must stand during the pledge, but aren't forced to actually recite it. Some of the parents are taking exception to the suspension, contending a more appropriate punishment would be making the children write essays to justify their actions. The mother of one of the students says her child wasn't being unpatriotic or protesting, though she wasn't sure why he refused to stand. |
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