Cocaine, handgun seized in lakeview search
WINONA Minn. – Drug agents arrested a Winona man after a search of his house turned up thousands of dollars worth of cocaine and a handgun. Arrested was Brandon Michael Emmons, 36. A housemate who had cocaine on his nostrils was not arrested immediately pending further investigation, Sheriff Ron Ganrude said. The arrest was in the 700 block of East Lake Boulevard, a fashionable neighborhood overlooking Lake Winona across Highway 61. Eight officers from the regional drug task force, the sheriff’s office and the city police department conducted the search. This was about 10:20 a.m. Police spokesperson Jay Rasmussen said the search followed about a month of investigation. Why eight officers? Because police never know what to expect when serving a drug search warrant, Rasmussen said.
Seized booty
On Emmons’ person was 28.5 grams of cocaine packaged in small bags, police said. Street value: $3,000. In his wallet: 0.25 grams of cocaine and $1,600 cash, police said. In his bedroom were prescription-only Adderall anxiety pills, in this case in a drug store jar with the label torn off. Also in the bedroom: $2,900 cash. In another bedroom: A handgun.
Emmons. Seized was cocaine weighed out in ready-to-sell plastic bags.
Supreme Court to felons on voting: Not so fast
ST. PAUL, Minn. – The movement to widen the right to vote suffered a setback before the Minnesota Supreme Court. The Court ruled that a felon’s voting rights cannot be restored automatically when leaving orison. Felons must wait until their entire sentence is served, including parole, probation and supervised supervision, the Court said. This affects an estimated 66,000 former inmates. To restore their right to vote would require a clarification in state law by the Legislature.
Earlier: House: Let felons vote after serving their time
Mild winter leave Lake Superior ice thinnest ever
ANN ARBOR. Mich. – The ice pack on Lake Superior is way, way low. The federal Great Lakes Coast Watch reported the ice at only 41% of the average since tacking began 51 years ago. The pack is below the previous low of 8.5%, a record set in 2012. As of Tuesday the ice was at a depth that usually occurs in mid-March to late March.
An orderly line-up at Winona fleeting harbor
Truck fleet all in a row. The CD Terminal fleet at the Winona Port awaits the 2023 shipping season for transloading. The fleet includes hopper trailers and dump trucks. Image: Steve Lunde
Port still iced in another five weeks
WINONA, Minn. – No one is more eager for spring than Dan Nisbit, president of the CD Terminal complex at the Winona port. CD’s business is transloading grain, pig iron and other commodities from barge to barge and from rail cars and trucks to barges. Ice on the Mississippi River usually breaks the third week of March for river shipping. For now, things are quiet at the port.
Emergency, fire crews make 52 calls
WINONA, Minn. – The Fire Department reported 41 emergency medical calls plus 11 fire calls in recent days:
> Tuesday, February 14: 6 medical calls plus 1 fire call.
> Monday, Februarty 13: 5 medical calls plus 1 fire call.
> Sunday, February 12: 7 medical calls plus 1 fire call.
> Saturday, February 11: 6 medical calls plus 2 fire calsl.
> Friday, February 10: 6 medical calls plus no fire calls.
> Thursday, February 9: 5 medical calls plus 1 fire call.
> Wednesday, February 8: 6 medical calls plus 5 fire calls.
Earlier: Emergency, fire crews make 50 ca1ls
Back in court on drug charge, this time federal court
MINNEAPOLIS . – A man suspected as a major southern Minnesota drug-dealer was charged in federal court. Adonis Adolph Dorman, 43, had been arrested in Albert Lea after an investigation by the multi-agency regional drug policing unit. The charge: Possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. An informant reported buying 471 grams of meth for $4,000 in Albert Lea in January. The informant quoted Dorman that he had “about 20 left,” which was taken to mean he had an additional 20 pounds for sale.
Dorman. In prison before for drugs.
Cafe fire like magnet to erratic Austin driver
AUSTIN, Minn. – A woman drove around a police car barricading a street at a restaurant fire, went right up to a hose carrying water to firefighters, then reversed and squealed off. Police gave chase with lights and sirens. A mile later the woman stopped. But as officers approached, she spun her tires and squealed off again. Police broke off the chase because of dangerous speeds on city streets. A few blocks farther, sheriff’s deputies found the woman in a parking lot. This was about 1 a.m. They arrested Samantha Rae Ricke, 33, of Austin. She was booked for fleeing police. Was she high? Police suspect so.
$100,000 damage. Fire reported at Japan Panda after hours, about 11:30 p.m., in northwest Austin Fire confined to kitchen. Smoke damage throughout.
Kellogg man subdued after gun shot at police
ROCHESTER, Minn. –A Kellogg man pulled a handgun from his pants and shot at a police officer in the laundry room of the Extended Stay America hotel in southwest Rochester. The bullet missed. Officers then rushed David Ray Collier, 33. It took four minutes for officers to suppress and cuff Collier, police said..This was about 12:15 a.m. Police had been called to the hotel for a report of people with guns. A witness pointed to Collier walking through the lobby. Police followed him to the laundry room and ordered him to halt. Then came the shot. After the arrest police learned that Callier had two active probation violation warrants in the last two weeks. Also he had multiple felony convictions including burglary, fleeing a peace officer in a motor vehicle, controlled substance crimes and domestic assault.
Collier. Resisted arrest and fired handgun at hotel near the intersection of South Broadway and U.S. Highway 52.
Verbatim
Jim Franklin, police chuef: “RPD officers are dedicated professionals who respond to calls for service that often involve people who put police at substantial risk each and every shift. This was a dangerous situation with an armed suspect that could have easily resulted in the use of deadly force. The officers demonstrated courage, skill and quick action, leading to a safe conclusion and the apprehension of the suspect.”
Minnesota prep
Basketball (boys): Rochester Century Panthers 63, Winona Winhawks 48
Basketball (boys): Plainview-Elgin-Millville Bulldogs 74, Lewiston-Altura Cardinals 44
Basketball (girls): Dover-Eyota Eagles 64, St. Charles Saints 60
Basketball (girls): LaCrosse Aquinas Blugolds 57, Winona Cotter Ramblers 48
Hockey (boys): Winona Winhawks 4, Owatonna Huskies 3
Wisconsin prep
Basketball (boys): Cochrane-Fountain City 71, Eleva-Strum Cardinals 32
Basketball (boys): Alma Center Lincoln Hornets 80, Gilmanton Panthers 59
Basketball (boys): Whitehall Norse 68, Blair-Taylor Wildcats 55
Basketball (girls): LaCrosse Aquinas Blugolds 57, Winona Cotter Ramblers 48
Basketball (girls): Augusta Beavers 49, Independence Indees 33
Ex-St. Charles mayor files for County Board
ST. CHARLES, Minn. – The former five-term mayor of St. Charles, Bill Spitzer, is running for the County Board. Spitzer filed candidacy documents in Winona on the first day of a two-week filing window. The Board seat, for District 3 from northern and western parts of the county, was vacated by Steve Jacob after he ran successfully for the state Legislature. Jacob had recommended St. Charles farm supplier Josh Elsing to succeed him, but Elsing hasn’t filed. County Board members are paid $24,300 plus insurance.
Spitzer. A community activist through many organizations. These include youth baseball, model railroading, the County Fair, and economic development.
Spitzer profile
Spitzer’s career has been mostly in law enforcement — 31 years in all, most as a Winona County sheriff’s deputy. Hr ran once for sheriff but lost. Spitzer was mayor of St. Charles from 2006 to 2016. He decided against seeking a sixth term. “It’s time for a change,” he said. “Every organization needs to evolve and this seemed like the appropriate time to move on to my next challenge.” He is a Rochester native and has moved back and forth between St. Charles and Rochester. In law enforcement he was a leader in the DARE project to discourage kids from drugs. In recent years he has been the substance misuse director in Austin schools.
Moralists on LaCrosse drag venue: Protect the kids
LACROSSE, Wis. – A handful of protesters waved homemade posters across the street from a downtown drag show on a miserably cold, drizzly evening. There were a few counter-protesters too but no confrontations. At issue was the Bronze Dragon, a non-alcohol cabare celebrating Valentine’s with a grand opening. The protest was not entirely coherent, although a there was a moralistic thrust and a “Protect the Children” theme. One poster read: “Jesus No Peace: Jesus Knows Peace,” whatever that meant. One protester. Larry Schneider of LaCrosse, was asked by a WKBT interviewer whether he had ever been to a drag show. His response: “That’s not really relevant.”
Bronze Dragon. Yes, the stuffed head spits fire. The booze-free cabaret is at 200 Main Street just off the Third Street bar strip.
Verbatim
Caitlyn Konze, cabaret owner: “It’s an all-ages show, which means it’s PG, so costumes are modest, and the content of the songs is not explicit. Parents can make their decision on bringing their children.” No ne under under 18 attended opening night, she said. “I have a big heart for people that are marginalized, that society has labeled as weird. I get that from Jesus. That’s what this bar is all about.”
Attack on Lake Huron balloon took two missiles
WASHINGTON – A Minnesota Air Guard pilot needed two Sidewinder air-to-air missiles to prick and destroy a mystery balloon over Lake Huron. “First shot missed. Second shot hit,” said General Mark Milley chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff at a news conference. The Sidewinders are an expesive weapon at $500,000 each. The Sidewinder that missed the balloon fell into Lake Huron and probably is intact on the floor and recoverable, Milley said. The balloon came down on the Canadian side of the border. The Sidewinder missile that missed endangered no aircraft or watercraft, Milley said. “We go to great lengths to make sure that the airspace is clear and the backdrop is clear up to the max effective range of the missile. And in this case, the missile landed harmlessly in the water.” It didn’t detonate, he said. “We tracked it all the way down, and we made sure that the airspace was clear of any commercial, civilian or recreational traffic.”
Earlier: Divers into Lake Huron for balloon wreckage
Earlier: Walz: Balloon shoot-down “flawless”
Wingtip launch. Sidewinder leaves fighter for target.
Dissected. Break-away diagram shows brains, motor.
Balloons’ origins
The Pentagon is is reasonably certain a that a balloon that ttaversed the continental Unuted States at 60,000 feet two weeks ago was on a spry mission from China. There is less certainty about other balloons that have been intercepted and downed at much lower altitudes. An emerging theory is that they are “sky trash” – balloons that had completed a “benign missions,” like weather research or academic or corporate flights, and then kept meandering aloft.
Trader reports $7,000 theft in baseball cards
ROCHESTER, Minn. – A thief kicked in a Rochester man’s door and stole $7,000 in baseball cards and other sports trading cards. The victim, age 44, whose name police didn’t release, doesn’t believe anything else was taken. He lives in 6200 block of Fairway Drive Northwest. He reported the burglary about 3:15 p.m.
Ever think of Winona as cute? Travel site does
DES MOINES, Iowa – The travel site BestLife, part of the Better Homes and Gardens magazine empire, has ranked Winona fifth among rhe cutest small towns in the Upper Midwest. Adding to the cute factor is the downtown district and how it’s keeping the town’s history alive, the site said. The whole list, by travel writer Erin Yarnall:
>Egg Harbor, Wisconsin.
> Amana Colonies, Iowa.
> Hamilton, Ohio.
> Beatrice, Nebraska.
> Winona.
> Nashville,Indiana,
> Mackinac Island, Michigan.
> Pella, Iowa.
> Augusta , Missouri.
> Woodstck, Illinois.
BestLife accolades
Verbatim:’Take a look around most big cities and you’ll see that they’re modernizing as they grow, upgrading old buildings and sadly, stripping away some of the charm. Thankfully, Winona, Minnesota, doesn’t have that problem. Its downtown area, filled with buildings constructed in the Victorian commercial architecture style makes it one of the cutest small cities in the Midwest.
“In addition to its charming downtown, Winona is home to Winona State Unversity, a public university with approximately nine thousand students. The school makes the city, which has a population of just 25,000, feel like a cute college town rather than a bustling city.
“Not only does Winona have a cute small-town main street, filled with shops, cafes, and public buildings, but it’s also set in a beautiful location. The city is on the Mississippi River, just over the border from Wisconsin, and it’s surrounded by bluffs including Sugar Loaf, a 500-foot bluff that towers over Lake Winona.”
Six Amish hurt when truck hits buggy
COLWELL, Iowa – A pickup struck a horse-drawn Amish buggy on a rural road, ejecting and injuring all six occupants. The State Patrol said the buggy occupants — Lavern Stauffer, 32, Teresa Stauffer, 27, and four children ages 6, 4, 2 and under 1 — were taken 10 miles to the Charles City hospital. The accident was 30 miles south of Lime Springs and the Minnesota border. This was about 3:30 p.m. The truck was driven Jim Whitmarsh, 66, of Charles City, troopers said.
Pence looks for right-wing Minnesota support
MINNEAPOLIS — Former Vice President Mike Pence dropped in to Minnesota to test whether the evangelical right wing of the Republican Party might still be with him if he runs for president. He didn’t disappoint. Speaking at the Minneapolis Club, Pence decried “the Radical Left’s indoctrination of children.” He focused on the Linn-Mar court case over an Iowa school’s policy to facilitate students’ gender-identity transitions without parental involvement. Pence accused the Left of “increasingly bizarre obsessions with race and sex and gender.”
A Constitutional dance
Pence declared in Minneapolis that he won’t comply with a subpoena about the failed Trump insurrection at the U.S. Capitol in 2021. His argument was built on the separation of powers in the U.S. Constitution. Pence argued that he was at the Capitol on January i6 n a legislative cpacity as president of the Senate and that the U.S. Justice Department that issued the subpoena is in the government’s executive branch. One branch of government cannot encroach on another branch, he said. Hearing Pence’s thinking on national television, most legal scholars shook their head doubtfully at whether the rationale would hold water in the courts.
Pence. On a tour to assess whether he would have a chance for the Republican nomination for the presidency in 2024.
Inventory tells Eyota drug operation scope
EYOTA, Minn. — The trailer-house that police raided Monday was loaded crook and cranhy with drugs. Consider this inventory by agents who conducted the raid, including suspected illicit materials, some of which were still in the process of police lab testing.
> Master bedroom shelf: 417 grams psylocibin mushrooms inside plastic tote.
> Southwest corner of master bedroom: 200.4 grams psylocibin mushrooms.
> Shelf in master bedroom: Glock 22 (Serial VVU076), with 40-caliber ammunition removed from magazines.
> Master bedroom shelf: Winchester 1300 (Serial 3174585).
> Master bedroom shelf: Documents on growing operations.
> Kitchen cupboard: 57.8 psylocibin mushrooms.
> Kitchen cupboard: Digital scale.
> Kitchen cupboard: 79.2 grams of psylocibin mushrooms
> Kitchen freezer: 9.3 grams of psychoactive tetrahydrocannabinol extract.
> Master bedroom closet: Winchester 1200 (Serial 121258).
> Master bedroom closet: Winchester Model 94-32 SPL Serial 2063729X).
> Master bedroom closet: Winchester Model 62 (Serial 19505).
>Master bedroom closet: Springfield Model 994 (Serial P405025).
> Master bedroom closet: Conn Valley Arms muzzle loader.
> Master bedroom closet: 394.1 grams psylocibin mushrooms
> Master bedroom bookshelf: $2,000 U.S. currency
>Master bedroom in silver container: Seven pills imprinted with E41.
>Master bedroom: 20 mg amphetamine-dextroamphetamine pills.
> Entertainment center: 186.1 grams marijuana.
> Elsewhere: Drug paraphernalia.
> Elsewhere: Controlled substance packaging.
> Elsewhere: 7 grams psylocibin mushrooms
Woman dead in smoky LaCrosse apartment
LACROSSE, Wis. – Firefighters found a woman dead in a smoke-filled apartment south of downtown about 4:40 a.m. Her name was not released immediately. The fire was at 725 Cameron Avenue. On arrival, fire crews smelled light smoke from a ground-floor apartment in the small rambling frame structure. The fire was confined to one unit. No other tenants were displaced.
Walz joins Minnesota soldiers in Norway
ST. PAUL, Minn. — Governor Tim Walz leaves for Norway this week for a ceremony honoring the 50th anniversary of joint exercises of the Minnesota National Guard and the Norwegian Home Guard. The Norwegian Reciprocal Exchange, known in military circles as NOREX, is the longest-running exchange partnership between two countries. The anniversary celebration will be in Trondheim, Norway’s third largest city. Walz himself is a Guard veteran.
Nordic training. About 100 Minnesota soldiers participate.
Muffin thief leaves crumbs behind
WINONA, Minn. – An after-hours automatic alarm drew police to the Perkins restaurant on the East End. They asked the manager to come back. The manager found muffin crumbs near the kitchen and ascertained that five mufins worth $20 were missing. Surveillance video snowed a former employee on the premises. Police found him at home and very drunk. Muffin wrappers were in the trash and on the kitchen counter.
Tighter state gun law passes House hurdle
ST. PAUL, Minn. – A gun safety bill has moved through the legislative process in the Minnesota House to a third committee. A companion bill is in process in the Senate. Both bills are among major 2023 goals of the Democratic majority in both houses. The bills would:
> Expand background check requirements for firearm sales and transfers.
> Allow authorities to temporarily confiscate guns from people flagged as threats.
The House bill passed the Judiciary Committee last week – Democrats all in favor, Republicans all opposed.The state already requires instant criminal background checks for gun sales at licensed dealers, that bill would extend the requirement to most private transfers of pistols and semiautomatic military-style assault weapons. Police could deny transfer permits if they deem an applicant a danger to the public or themselves. Police and mental health groups support both bills but not the Minnesota Gun Owners Caucus or the National Rifle Association.
Chamber award to Riverside electronics plant
WINONA, Minn. – The custom-contract manufacturer Riverside Integrated Solutions, whose main business is circuit boards, was named the Winona Chamber of Commerce business of the year. Riverside, which has plants in Winona and Lewiston, was cited for excellence in economic development, workplace quality, environmental stewardship, and community engagement. Other wards:
> Rising Star. Bluff View Estates, in its third year.
> Main Street Business. Peter’s Biergarten for creating a fun and thriving atmosphere downtown.
> Young Professionals. WNB Financial for support of young professionals’ growth and development.
> Volunteerism. Paula and Gerard Beyer of Gerard’s Small Engine Repair for helping fill volunteer slots at various Chamber events.
> Retiring Board Chair. Andy Puetz of Chrysler Winona.
Minnesota prep
Basketball (boys): Winona Cotter Ramblers 58, Lanesboro Burros 57
Basketball (boys): Wells United South Central Rebels 74, St. Charles Saints 65
Basketball (girls): St. Charles Saints 50, Cannon Falls Bombers 42
Wisconsin prep
Basketball (boys): Galesville-Ettrick-Trempealeau Red Hawks 67, Elk Mound Mounders 62
Basketball (boys): Arcadia Raiders 85, Viroqua Blackhawks 50
Basketball (boys): Melrose-Mindoro Mustangs 64, Cochrane-Fountain City Pirates 57
Basketball (girls): Galesville-Ettrick-Trempealeau Red Hawks 40, Black River Falls Tigers 33
Basketball (girls): Prairie Farm Panthers 73, Mondovi Buffaloes 54
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