Minnesota News Briefs: Redwood Falls native found dead in MIT dorm room

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CAMBRIDGE, Mass. -- A Redwood Falls native was found dead in his dorm room at Massachusetts Institute of Technology on Monday. Officials were contacted by concerned family members after they were unable to reach 21-year-old Brian Anderson.

Anderson was a management major at MIT and an active member of the school's wrestling team. There have been two suicides on campus this year, however a school official says that there is no strong indication that Brian’s death was the result of suicide. The state Medical Examiner's office is investigating the cause of death. Anderson was a 2009 graduate of Redwood Valley High School. Anderson's parents still live in the area.

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Administrators and counseling staff at North Dakota State University are dealing with the deaths of four freshmen who died in a collision on a slick section of Interstate 94 near Alexandria Monday. The four female students from the Twin Cities area died at the scene of the three-vehicle wreck. Janna Stoskopf, dean of student life at the university, says the school's counseling center is fully staffed and will remain open as long as needed 18-year-old Lauren Peterson of Prior Lake, 18-year-old Megan Sample of Rogers, 18-year-old Danielle Renninger of Excelsior and 19-year-old Jordan Playle of Elk River died in the crash. The injured include the drivers of the other car and an SUV along with a passenger in one of those vehicles. They escaped serious injury.

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A northwestern Minnesota woman is dead following a head-on collision west of Newfolden. The Marshall County Sheriff's office says 27-year-old Amanda Kittleson of Warren lost control of a van on a slippery county road Monday night. Two children and another woman in the van along with the driver of the second vehicle were taken to a Thief River Falls hospital.

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Transit officials and commuters hope that a pedestrian bridge south of Minneapolis reopens soon. A portion of busy Hiawatha Avenue remains closed after a bridge cable support snapped over the weekend. For now, Metro Transit spokesman John Siqveland says riders taking the train into Minneapolis from Mall of America need to make a couple of bus connections. He says typical delays are running about 10-to 15-minutes along that part of the route. Mn-DOT is currently inspecting the bridge.

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The Central Minnesota Community Foundation has received it’s largest donation ever. Alice Erickson Cox died at the age of 97 in December and left her entire estate of over six million dollars to the Community Foundations' affiliate -- the Willmar Area Community foundation. The gift more than doubles the assets of the Willmar Area Community Foundation to $12-million, and will increase the Central Minnesota Community Foundation’s assets to more than $71-million. Cox was born and raised in Lake Lillian and lived most of her adult life in California before returning to Willmar in 2004.

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While snow has slowed down travel across Minnesota, the cost of driving is up. Minnesota-Gas-Prices.com reports regular unleaded now at the 3-50 mark on average statewide. That's a four month high. U.S. gas prices, which are three-cents more expensive on average, are now at their highest point in history for this time of year.

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A good number of Minnesota lawmakers will be focused on the best way to get reelected, after a court panel this afternoon releases its plan for redrawing the state's legislative and congressional district boundaries based on the latest census. The new boundaries will in some cases change which constituents a lawmaker represents, and will likely also put some incumbents in the same districts with each other -- meaning both people would have decisions to make about their political futures. The new boundaries also have implications for Republicans' chances for retaining control of the Minnesota House and Senate in this fall's election, and Democrats' chances to regain a majority. That's because the mix of DFL versus Republican voters could be different in the newly-drawn districts. Experts will go over it all with a fine-toothed comb and then devise the most effective strategy and "spin" for the upcoming campaign.

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If you are wheezing, sneezing or coughing, you may be getting a dose of spring allergy season a couple months early. The mild temperatures and minimal snow cover are moving up the allergy season this year and lots of sufferers are feeling it, according to Doctor James Li (Lee) at the Mayo Clinic. He says many people with allergies can get relief with over-the-counter antihistamines but he recommends consulting with a doctor first.

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A Minnesota musher and his dogs are basking in the glow of another win in the UP 200 Sled Dog Race. Ryan Anderson of Ray won his third consecutive race, finishing this year's route in Grand Marais, Michigan on Sunday. The race began near Marquette and usually ends there but because of a lack of snow, racers took a different route this time around.

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Charges could come as soon as today against the suspect in a fatal home invasion in southern Minnesota. Police arrested the suspect last night, just hours after the incident in the town of Blue Earth. Investigators say the masked man entered a home just past midnight Monday and bludgeoned the victims with some type of blunt object. A 37-year-old man was killed. A woman and two teenage girls were seriously injured. There's no word yet on a possible motive.

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A flight attendant for Pinnacle Airlines has been fired after being removed from a Delta flight out of Grand Forks on Sunday. The jet was due to take off for Minneapolis-St. Paul International but the flight was canceled. Pinnacle would not comment on the reason for the flight attendant's removal. However on Monday, a spokesman did say the FAA requires flight crew members to be alcohol-free for 8 hours prior to a flight while Pinnacle Airlines' requirement is 12-hours.

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A month and a half after ending her bid for the White House, Michele Bachmann says she will run for reelection to her congressional seat regardless of what happens to her current district. A court panel is set to offer a plan on redrawing the state's political boundaries today. The 6th-District has grown the most over the past decade and could be divided into two or more districts during the process.

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A bill is moving forward in the state Senate that would prohibit union dues from being taken out of payments that home child care providers receive from the state. It's in response to Governor Dayton's executive order for a union election at licensed home child care providers -- which is being challenged in court and there's a hearing tomorrow. Cloquet child care provider Heather Falk told lawmakers if dues are deducted, many providers won't accept children whose parents pay with state C-CAP money because they won't be able to cover their costs. Governor Dayton says his order specifies that only those who choose to join a union will have to pay dues. But others say the unions have gotten around those restrictions in other states.

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Here are the winning numbers from the Minnesota State Lottery for Monday, February 20th, 2012. The Daily Three: 5-3-5. Northstar Cash: 4-8-15-20-29. Gopher Five: 2-24-28-30-33

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