4 Minn. Family Members Now Convicted In Sex Trafficking Case

Four family members have now been convicted for participating in a sex trafficking ring that last about two years, extended to multiple Minnesota communities and victimized many vulnerable women. On Wednesday, the Ramsey County Attorney's Office announced that 30-year-old Otis Deno Washington, of St. Paul, was found guilty in Ramsey County District Court on multiple sex trafficking counts. According to a press release, they are: two counts of promotion of prostitution; two counts of solicitation, one involving a minor; and one count of conspiracy to commit sex trafficking.

• Nov 20, 2013

CASA Volunteers Help Abused, Neglected Kids Find Themselves

The numbers are staggering. Every day across the country, nearly 2,000 children become victims of abuse or neglect. But there's a group of volunteers who stay with children until they are placed in loving permanent homes.

• Nov 13, 2013

Jury Finds Man Guilty Of Role In Prostitution Ring

A Ramsey County jury found a 27-year-old Brooklyn Park man guilty on Friday in connection with a human sex trafficking operation that involved numerous victims -- including women who were mentally slow or vulnerable -- across multiple Minnesota communities.

• Nov 9, 2013

Jury Finds Man Guilty Of Sex Trafficking Teen Girl In St. Paul

A Ramsey County jury found a Chicago man guilty in the sex trafficking of a 15-year-old girl in St. Paul in April 2013. Arteco Marvell Rhodes, 38, was found guilty of possession of child pornography and he will be sentenced at 9 a.m. on Dec. 13.

• Nov 2, 2013

Teen Sentenced After Admitting To Taking Part In Brutal Beating

A 15-year-old boy has been sentenced to more than a year in a juvenile facility after admitting to taking part in a brutal beating two months ago that left a 26-year-old St. Paul man with serious brain injuries. On Tuesday, Ramsey County Juvenile Court Judge Mark Ireland sentenced the teenager, who has not been named due to his age, to a 103-month stayed adult sentence, 18-24 months in a secure juvenile facility and he'll be under enhanced supervision until he turns 21.

• Oct 23, 2013

Lawsuit Alleges Abuse By St. Thomas Priest

A woman is suing a university priest and professor in St. Paul for alleged sexual abuse beginning when she was 13 years old. The civil lawsuit against the Rev. Michael Jerome Keating of the University of St. Thomas was filed Monday in Ramsey County.

• Oct 14, 2013

Trevino Found Guilty, Kira's Father: 'Justice Has Been Done'

A jury has found Jeffery Trevino guilty of second-degree murder, but not guilty of second-degree murder with intent in the death of his wife, Kira Steger. The jurors found that Trevino did kill his wife but that it wasn't his plan. They say her death happened during his attack.

• Oct 2, 2013

Ramsey Co. Courthouse Briefly Shutdown Due To Suspicious Package

The Ramsey County Courthouse has been reopened after a brief shutdown due to a suspicious package Wednesday morning.

• Sep 25, 2013

Minn. Sees Rush In Gay Couples To Get Marriage Licenses

Same-sex couples have obtained nearly 1 of every 3 marriage licenses issued in Minnesota since they got the legal right to wed. That's the finding of a statewide survey by The Associated Press of the earliest impact of the new gay marriage law. It shows that at least 1,640 gay couples plan to get married.

• Sep 2, 2013

Search For Drugs Ends With Officer-Involved Shooting

A search for drugs inside a New Brighton home Tuesday afternoon ended with a task force member shooting a suspect multiple times.

• Aug 27, 2013

Judge Refuses To Throw Out Suit Against Scouts

A Ramsey County judge has refused to throw out a lawsuit over a former scoutmaster's sexual abuse of one of his Boy Scouts. Judge Elena Ostby on Friday denied requests to dismiss the lawsuit by the Boy Scouts of America, the local Northern Star Council and the church that sponsored the troop.

• Aug 23, 2013

Man Killed In Shoreview Accident ID'd

Officials have named the man killed Tuesday afternoon in an accident in Shoreview.

• Aug 21, 2013

Police: Pedestrian Hit, Killed In Shoreview

A pedestrian was hit and killed Tuesday afternoon on the 5500 block of Lexington Avenue in Shoreview, Minn., according to authorities. The Ramsey County Sheriff's Office said officers arrived on the scene at 12:55 p.m. Tuesday after a vehicle driving northbound on Lexington Avenue, north of County Road I, collided with an adult male.

• Aug 20, 2013

St. Paul Man Fights For Life After Being Beaten By Several People

Twenty-six-year-old Raymond Wisdstrand was walking on Payne Avenue Sunday evening when he came across a large group of people, who were watching a fight.

• Aug 9, 2013

Authorities ID Victim In Suspicious St. Paul Death

St. Paul officials have identified the 25-year-old man found dead Monday morning on the city's west side.

• Aug 6, 2013

St. Paul Forestry Crews Finish Tree Cleanup, Shift Focus To Parks

St. Paul's forestry staff have completed their cleanup effort three and a half weeks after storms knocked down hundreds of trees in the city. According to city officials, the storms on June 21-22 contributed to the fall of more than 500 public trees and numerous private ones. Mayor Chris Coleman applauded city crews for their arduous work.

• Jul 19, 2013

Jury's Indecision Pushes Sex Trafficking Case Into September

After five days of deliberation, a jury could not come to a unanimous decision in the case of a St. Paul sex trafficking ring that targeted vulnerable teenage girls, according to the Ramsey County Attorney. A trial date has now been set for early September, according to the attorney, in the case that prosecutes two brothers and their two uncles for sex trafficking at least 10 known victims.

• Jul 18, 2013

Hennepin & Ramsey Tack On $10 Wheelage Tax On Drivers

Vehicle owners in Minnesota's two largest counties will soon pay more to register their cars and trucks. On Tuesday, commissioners in both Hennepin and Ramsey counties approved an inaugural $10 wheelage tax per vehicle.

• Jul 16, 2013

Dayton Declares State Of Emergency In 26 Counties

Gov. Mark Dayton has declared a state of emergency in 26 counties after storms and flash flooding last month. The executive order will allow the state to call for federal disaster assistance in the areas hit hardest by storms.

• Jul 5, 2013

Good Question: Where Does Traffic Ticket Money Go?

In Hennepin County alone, people paid nearly $60 million in court fees last year -- mostly from people who got caught doing something wrong on the road. Karl Kohn of West St. Paul contributed to that pot with two speeding tickets of his own. Each set him back $145. So, he wondered: "When you get a ticket where does the money from your fine go?"

• Jun 27, 2013

Wrecking Ball Swings At Minn.'s Top Superfund Site

Minnesota's top Superfund site is finally undergoing cleanup as demolition began Friday on the former Army ammunition plant in Arden Hills.

• Jun 7, 2013

Hennepin Co. Gets 45 Same-Sex Marriage Applications

Hennepin County has received more than three-dozen applications for same-sex marriage licenses under Minnesota's new law allowing gay marriage. Minnesota's largest county received 38 applications Thursday, the first day the county began accepting applications for same-sex marriages.

• Jun 7, 2013

Gay-Friendly Marriage Licenses Make Minn. Debut

It was an emotional morning for several same-sex couples who lined up to apply for their marriage licenses at the Hennepin County Government Center. Hennepin, Ramsey, and Washington counties allowed same-sex couples to apply starting Thursday morning.

• Jun 6, 2013

Shoreview Shooting Under Investigation As Neighbors, Colleagues Grieve

The Ramsey County Sheriff's Department is continuing to investigate Tuesday's shooting in Shoreview that left two dead and two injured. Authorities believe Johnny Simpson shot and killed his girlfriend Nancy Sullivan as she was trying to move out of the house they shared.

• Jun 5, 2013

Bald Eagles Make Strong Comeback Along Mississippi

One of our national symbols is making a comeback along the Mississippi River. For years, the bald eagle had been nearing extinction due to pesticides. But things have changed for the better. Paul Labovitz with the National Park Service says the experience of seeing a bald eagle is one filled with awe.

• May 27, 2013

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