Bob Collins
Come and get me, coppers. I’m going to bet on the NCAA tournament if an office pool should be created by unnamed ne’er-do-wells known to inhabit the cubicles of public radio. Read more →
MPR News Reflections and observations on the news
Crime and Justice
You’ve got to admire the persistence of Deb Anderson, who was rewarded today with news that a woman killed by a state trooper in 1980 has been identified. Read more →
Rejecting a dissenting justice who said the nature of trash has changed, the Minnesota Supreme Court today ruled that you should have no expectation of privacy when putting your trash at the curb, saying the Minnesota Constitution does not provide greater privacy protection of trash than the U.S. Constitution. Read more →
A Grand Marais farmer is not being held in contempt of court for refusing to allow state inspectors onto his property. Read more →
Hiding from police in a boat, hours after he and his brother planted the Boston Marathon finish line bombs, Dzkhokhar A. Tsarnaev wrote in pencil that he believed his Islamic faith permitted the killing of innocents in defense of other Muslims, a witness testified Tuesday. Read more →
Had the Mall of America and Bloomington officials let people disperse as they were in the process of doing in January when Black Lives Matter held its “illegal” protest in the Rotunda, they might not have handed a huge victory to the group. But every movement needs its martyrs. It’s how an issue stays front Read more →
Something good has come of the insipid national debate over whether the dress was blue or gold. Read more →
Even if we didn’t enjoy reading legal briefs and court decisions, we’d probably be able to curl up with Portland, Oregon resident Kathleen Hampton’s lawsuit against a restaurant.
Her brief — she’s representing herself — is seeking $100,000 because the restaurant was mean to her. Read more →
If there’s a fight over farming and freedom, it probably involves milk. Read more →
Not every love story can have a happy ending.
Rebekah Gregory, 27, and Pete DiMartino, 30, were married 10 months ago. Read more →
The most interesting statistic in this year’s concealed carry report: There was not a single case of a gun permitted under the carry law being used for self-defense. Read more →
If you’re sitting on an ATV, wearing blaze orange and carrying a gun, you’re trying to take a deer under Minnesota’s hunting laws, the Minnesota Supreme Court says. Read more →
The University of Minnesota said Wednesday it will no longer provide general descriptions of those responsible for crime on campus.
In so doing, the U of M adopts a standard used by many news organizations which, at least by policy, don’t provide the race of suspects unless it actually provides some distinctive information. Read more →
Judge, a K-9 in New Jersey, got a hero’s farewell as he walked into the veterinary clinic last week where he was put down. Read more →
Tomorrow, I’m on the weekly roundtable on MPR News with Kerri Miller in which the subject of reporter transparency made its way into the conversation among the panel of journalists. Read more →