>>Police Investigation Into “Baby Angel” Death Finds New Lead
(Winona, MN) — The ongoing probe into a baby found dead in the Mississippi River more than a decade ago may have found a new focus. “Baby Angel” was found near Winona in 2011. The Winona County Sheriff’s Office says forensic evidence may have led them to the baby’s mother. The sheriff’s office says DNA and forensic genealogy point to a 41-year-old woman who was found in Winona last year. Initial testing using a genetic sample from the woman’s trash showed a possible match to the baby’s DNA. Investigators are now asking for a warrant to get a blood sample directly from the woman.
>>State Patrol Responds to 175 Crashes on Snowy Minnesota Roads
(Golden Valley, MN) — The spring snowfall is creating difficult travel conditions on Minnesota roads. The State Patrol says troopers responded to 175 crashes, 19 with injuries and one fatality, between 5 pm Thursday and 6 am today. There were also 101 vehicle spinouts and three jackknifed semis. Parts of central and southern Minnesota received one to six inches of snow.
>>Prospects Dim for End-of-Life Options Bill in MN Legislature
(St. Paul, MN) – Prospects are dimming at the State Capitol for a bill to give terminally ill Minnesotans end-of-life options — what opponents call physician-assisted suicide — because the measure won’t meet today’s deadline for clearing necessary committees in the state Senate. D-F-L Representative Mike Freiberg says his bill *has* made it through four committees in the House, the farthest it’s ever gotten since being reintroduced every two years since 2015. Freiberg says he doesn’t have a firm commitment but certainly intends to advocate for a vote in the full Minnesota House. But in the Senate, Democratic Majority Leader Erin Murphy says “it will probably take more than one year” before lawmakers can adopt the measure.
>>Bill to Ban LGBTQ+ Panic Defense in MN Moves Forward
(St. Paul, MN) – A bill to ban the LGBTQ+ Panic Defense in Minnesota, a legal strategy blaming the victim’s sexual orientation or gender identity as a reason to be harmed or killed, is moving through the House. Testifier Amber Muhm, a Trans woman working for The Aliveness Project, asks, “How can we call ourselves a refuge state for trans folks if such an obvious inequity of justice is possible?…Why is our mere existence so ‘controversial,’ that we are denied basic legal equity, even in death?” Republican Representative Elliot Engen of White Bear Township raised a question about situations where someone discovers their partner’s sexual identity differs from what they initially believed. Democratic Representative Brion Curran of White Bear Lake, the bill’s author, and other testifiers dismissed this as harmful rhetoric, emphasizing its rarity and likening it to differences in religious beliefs.
>>Sen. Smith Announces $350M Federal Funding for 100 Local MN Projects
(Undated) – Minnesota will receive over 350 million dollars in federal funding for 100 local projects across the state. Senator Tina Smith says “Smaller communities just really don’t have the tax base to make millions and millions of dollars in improvements to wastewater and drinking systems, for example. So that’s where we come in to try and help make it work.” Smith says what she loves about this is that these are projects developed at the local level.
>>Mayo Clinic Health System Introduces Primary Care On Demand App
(Rochester, MN) — The Mayo Clinic Health System is launching a new Primary Care on Demand mobile app. The app will provide patients with 24/7 access to healthcare. It allows patients to ask questions about their health, seek treatment for minor health issues such as rashes or colds, and schedule video visits with a doctor. Online visits will be billed at the standard office rate. The app is available to patients 18 years and older in Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Iowa.
>>Twins vs. Braves Spring Training Game Cancelled in Fort Myers
(Fort Myers, FL) — The Minnesota Twins spring training game today against the Braves in Fort Myers is canceled due to rain and thunderstorms in southwest Florida. The team says the Grapefruit League matchup will not be made up. Officials say ticketholders will receive an automatic refund. The Twins have a split-squad game tomorrow at the Red Sox spring ballpark in Fort Myers.
>>MN Boys State High School Basketball Semifinals at Williams Arena
(Minneapolis, MN) — The Minnesota Boys State High School Basketball Tournament continues today at Willams Arena on the U of M campus. Cherry is playing Nevis in the first Class A semifinal at noon and West Central takes on Fertile-Beltrami at 2:00 p.m. this afternoon. The Class 2-A semifinals feature Breck versus Minnehaha Academy at 6 pm and Albany faces Lake City in the late game. All four state championship finals will be played Saturday on the Gophers’ home court.
>>U of M CFANS Looking to Turn Food Waste Into Animal Feed
(Minneapolis, MN) – The University of Minnesota’s College of Food, Agricultural Natural Resource Sciences is looking to cut down on global food waste by turning it into animal feed. Professor Jerry Shurson notes multiple bakery byproducts such as chips, cookies, and cereals, that are safe to eat but don’t meet certain quality standards to get them on our grocery shelves would be a good start. Shurson will host a virtual international conference next week to educate people in feed and feeding industries about the value of food waste for livestock in the backdrop of food, climate, and sustainability challenges.
