>>Paynesville woman pleads guilty to murdering disabled daughter
(St. Cloud, MN) — A Paynesville woman has pleaded guilty to murdering her disabled daughter by depriving her of medical care. Court records show the daughter had chronic respiratory failure and severe developmental delay from the loss of oxygen at birth — and prosecutors say when 38-year-old Elise Nelson was alone with her over four days in June 2020, she disabled an oxygen monitor. Nelson allegedly responded to a text message from a family friend hours after it was sent, saying she had just finished performing CPR and was waiting for the police. But court records show Nelson didn’t call 9-1-1 until about 20 minutes after that text message was sent. Nelson will be sentenced on January 8th.
>>Minnesota Union Nurses File Intent to Picket at 3 Allina Health Hospitals
(St. Paul, MN) — Union nurses plan to picket next Thursday at three Allina Health hospitals in St. Paul, Coon Rapids and Minneapolis. The Minnesota Nurses Association in a news release says, “Nurses are speaking out as Allina continues to close services essential to local communities and ignore nurses’ concerns about the outcomes of Allina’s current benchmarking plans.” M-N-A officials claim the plan will reduce nurse staffing levels. There will not be a work stoppage during the informational pickets at Abbott Northwestern, Mercy, and United Hospitals next week.
>>MN AG Ellison Stops IPG from Demanding Illegal Utility Fees, Eviction of Those Not Paying Said Fees
(St. Paul, MN) — Attorney General Keith Ellison has filed a new civil enforcement lawsuit and an emergency motion against Investment Property Group (IPG) to protect tenants from unlawful evictions and illegal utility charges. Earlier this year, IPG demanded gas utility fees, imposed in the middle of their tenant’s leases, some as high as $200 per month, at 13 of its Hennepin County complexes. Now, they are evicting 21 tenants for not paying those fees. The motion from Ellison immediately stops the business from charging its tenants the illegal fees, as well as the eviction of the tenants not paying those fees. Ellison says, “It’s tough enough for low-income renters to afford their lives. When landlords charge them illegal, extra fees they never agreed to pay, then try to evict them when they don’t pay those illegal fees, I will step in to stop it.”
>>State Health Department Releases 1st Flu Report of Season
(St. Paul, MN) — The Minnesota Department of Health is out with the season’s first weekly flu activity report. Five people have been hospitalized with influenza so far and one school in the state has reported a flu outbreak. Minnesota had more than 33 hundred hospitalizations and 224 deaths last flu season. The new influenza vaccine is widely available at healthcare providers and pharmacies.
>>Debuting Horror Movie Filmed in Lanesboro
(Lanesboro, MN) — A Lanesboro bed and breakfast is the star of tonight’s (FRI) debuting horror movie, ‘Voice of the Shadows!’ The director, Nick Bain, a St. Paul native, says he’s been creating the “psychological thriller” for years, and when looking for a place to film, Lanesboro’s very own James A. Thompson House reached out, and the rest is history. The film, starring Bee Vang, Martin Harris, and Corinne Mica revolves around “A young working-class woman standing to inherit an estate if she and her boyfriend abide by a set of bizarre stipulations.” The movie premieres tonight (FRI) at the St. Mane Theater in Lanesboro at 7 p.m., tickets are $20. After the premiere, the movie will also be shown at the Twin Cities Film Festival this Saturday, October 21st.
>>Becker County Sheriff’s Office asking public’s help to find a stolen motorhome
(White Earth, MN) — The Becker County Sheriff’s Office is asking for the public’s help in finding a stolen motorhome. The burgundy, grey, and white 2016 Ford Ecoline Sunseeker was taken from a home near the Mahnomen-Becker County line in White Earth Township sometime Wednesday night. Anyone with information on the stolen motorhome is asked to call the Becker County Sheriff’s Office.
>>Weekly Drought Update
(Undated) — Widespread rains over the last few weeks are soaking in and changing the weekly drought monitor. This week’s update shows a major improvement statewide. A little more than one percent of the state is reporting extreme drought conditions, that’s down four percent since last week. 25% of the state reports a severe drought, down more than 14% since last week’s report.