Minnesota News Briefs: Judge says no to Senser's request to throw out guilty verdict

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MINNEAPOLIS - A Hennepin County judge has denied a defense request to throw out guilty verdicts in a hit-and-run case against Amy Senser or grant her a new trial.

Defense attorneys say instructions given to the jury were flawed and the judge withheld a note jurors gave him just before the verdicts were read. District Judge Daniel Mabley called the note a "complete non-issue" because it was given to him after the verdicts were reached and signed. After the judge issued his ruling, former Minnesota Viking Joe Senser made a comment apparently directed at an attorney representing the victim's family and stormed out of the courtroom. His wife's sentencing is expected July 9th as previously scheduled.

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A man is dead after a confrontation with officers in the northwest Twin Cities suburb of Brooklyn Center last night. Police say the man was carrying a rifle, with a scope, down the street. As the scene developed, one of the officers was forced to shoot the man He died there. More details including identification will be released soon.

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Sherburne County authorities report the death of a Clear Lake man whose car wound up in the Elk River last night. Divers recovered the body of 61-year-old Roger Petron from the partially-submerged vehicle. He was the sole occupant. Investigators are trying to figure out what caused the accident.

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A girl struck by an SUV while walking her bike across a Twin Cities area highway has died. Authorities identified the girl as 12-year old Aimee Trudeau of Eden Prairie. The accident happened in Chanhassen Wednesday afternoon and Trudeau died from her injuries in the hospital about six hours after.

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A 28-year-old bicyclist has died of injuries from a collision with a car in the Twin Cities suburb of Shoreview Wednesday. Investigators say Joseph Hunt of Shoreview was unconcious but breathing when first reponders arrived but he died later at a St. Paul hospital. Authorities say the driver of the car called 911 immediately after the crash and has cooperated fully with police.

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Funeral services are today at Seven Dolors Catholic Church in Albany for 50-year-old Jon Maus), who was killed in an explosion Monday at Verso Paper Mill in Sartell. Maus was laid off at the plant last year, and just a few weeks ago was called back to work. He is survived by his wife Lucy and their four children. The investigation into what triggered the blast continues. Firefighters continue to tamp out hot spots around the site.

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Sartell Fire Chief Ken Heim says the Verso Paper Mill fire is contained and areas not affected by the explosion and fire have been turned back over to the company. Mill officials can now begin repairing and readying the plant for production again. Around twenty-percent of the massive paper rolls have been removed which allowed firefighters to gain access to what’s referred to as the “red zone” where hot pockets remain behind the collapsed roof. Eight fire departments assisted extinguishing the remaining hot spots, smoldering paper rolls and roof flashing yesterday.

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A couple of funds have been set up for affected workers at the Verso Paper Mill and the family of an Albany man killed in Monday's explosion and fire at the Sartell plant. Bank Vista of Sartell has established the Jon M. Maus Memorial Fund and the Sartell Verso Employee Relief Fund. Donations can be mailed or dropped off in person. Anyone with questions should contact Bank Vista. (Address: 125 Twin Rivers Court, Sartell, MN 56377.)

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The fire may be out at the Verso Paper Mill but a new problem has ignited in Sartell -- how to pay for it all. Sartell City Administrator Patti Gartland doesn't know how much the massive firefighting effort will cost, but says it's going to go well "into the six figures." Gartland offers one option they do have in this situation -- seeking state and federal assistance. The city could also see if Verso Paper's insurance company will cover some of the emergency expenses.

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Two people are lucky to be alive after their small homemade aircraft crashed at the Hutchinson Municipal Airport. The FAA is investigating the crash-landing which sent the Oregon man and North Carolina woman to the hospital with injuries. Both are expected to recover.

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On the Minnesota flood watch, the Crow River west of the Twin Cities is cresting in Delano, and is now on the decline at Mayer. To the north along the Mississippi, the river is leveling off at moderate flood stage near Aitkin, while minor flooding is still happening near Brainerd and Camp Ripley. In northwestern Minnesota, the Buffalo River is dropping below flood stage south of Moorhead.

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Some northeastern Minnesota property owners are being told get their boats, lifts and docks out of the water and to high ground. This, after the Army Corps of Engineers predicted water levels on Big Sandy Lake, north of McGregor, will rise two to three more feet following recent heavy rains. Officials say the lake's dam is wide open, flowing at full force into the already bloated Mississippi River.

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The month of May has come and gone and it's in the record books as one of Minnesota's warmest and wettest. It was the second-wettest May on record for the Twin Cities and St. Cloud and the sixth wettest in Duluth. Most other places in the state finished well above normal for precipitation during May -- the only exception being northwestern Minnesota. Climatologist Pete Boulay says May was also Minnesota's 11th straight month of above-normal temperatures.

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The month of June starts off on a brisk note this morning across northeastern Minnesota. Frost advisories are in effect from north of the Twin Ports and Hibbing up to Canada. The National Weather Service reports temperatures in the low-to mid-30's this morning along the North Shore, with Silver Bay chilling down into the upper-20's.

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Cold nights have taken their toll on some crops in northwestern Minnesota. the U-of-M Extension reports some isolated damage to small grains, especially across low spots in some farm fields. The temperature has dipped below freezing in a couple of instances this week.

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The Minnesota Gambling Control Board is accepting license applications from charities for electronic pulltabs and bingo. The games are being developed for hand-held devices similar to an i-Pad or tablet computer. Executive Director Tom Barrett says they will be available at the same location where you purchase paper pulltabs. Barrett says the law requires that the e-pulltab devices cannot mimic or play like a slot machine. He hopes they will be introduced in Minnesota bars and restaurants sometime this fall.

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Minnesota medical device companies are keeping a close eye on Washington. After passage by a congressional panel on Thursday, the U.S. House could vote next week on a bill that would repeal a tax on medical devices. The bill, introduced by Third-District Republican Erik Paulsen, is expected to pass -- but it's future is uncertain in the Senate. Among the companies with a keen interest in the outcome: Medtronic, St. Jude Medical, Boston Scientific and 3M.

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Former President Bill Clinton will be the keynote speaker at this summer's annual DFL dinner. The event, formerly known as the Hubert H. Humphrey Day Dinner, will now be called the Humphrey-Mondale Dinner. DFL Chair Ken Martin says in a critical election year they're proud to welcome President Clinton as they honor two of the DFL Party's greatest leaders - Walter Mondale and Hubert Humphrey. The dinner is August 4th at the Minneapolis Convention Center.

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One of the prime movers of the Vikings stadium will not seek re-election. State Representative Morrie Lanning made his intentions public this morning. The Moorhead Republican was elected to the Minnesota House in 2002 and is in his fifth term. He was the lead House author on the Vikings stadium bill. Prior to serving in the legislature, Lanning was longtime mayor of Moorhead, a city councilmember and dean of students at Concordia College. House Speaker Kurt Zellers says Lanning is a "true statesman" and adds the "honorable way he goes about working with his colleagues" is second to none.

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A rather large and valuable piece of NASA equipment on its way from Minnesota to Texas has been found. A balloon telescope being developed by U-of-M researchers went missing this week after its delivery truck and its driver didn't didn't turn up at their destination. Authorities say there was no damage to the equipment which was found on its trailer at a truck wash. The driver was based out of Minneapolis.

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A Colorado company says its proposed pipeline project that would move 150,000 barrels of North Dakota crude daily to a hub in Minnesota is at risk of being scrapped. Durango-based High Prairie Pipeline alleges Enbridge Energy Partners has refused to allow a connection to the Canadian company's terminal at Clearbrook, Minnesota. High Prairie wants to force Enbridge to take North Dakota crude shipped by the Colorado company and has taken its complaint to federal regulators. An Enbridge official says the company's mainline is running at capacity and it does not have room for the additional crude.

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A glut of foreclosed properties is still depressing the housing market in Minnesota. First quarter numbers show financially-troubled homes accounted for 27-percent of all residential sales, which is above the national average. Banks in Minnesota are not pushing so-called "short sales" to clear the backlog. That's where lenders forgive part of the mortgage balance, giving mortgage holders a better shot at keeping the home. RealtyTrac's Daren Blomquist says in a lot of other markets, banks are pushing short sales more and approving short sales more readily.

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With exports increasing every day from Minnesota to China, Governor Mark Dayton is planning a trade mission soon to Beijing, Shanghai and other Chinese cities. From June 8th through the 17th, the governor will be joined by representatives from some of Minnesota's biggest comapnies including 3M, Best Buy and Medtronic, along with Delta Air Lines, plus education leaders. China is the state's second-largest export market for manufactured products and a huge buyer of Minnesota farm commodities like soybeans.

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The Minnesota Supreme Court has reversed a lower court ruling and has thrown out a class-action lawsuit against the maker of Marlboro Lights. The suit alleged Philip Morris used deceptive trade practices in marketing its brand of "Light" cigarettes. But the high court says the state's six-billion-dollar settlement with the tobacco industry in 1998 releases it from all claims. But Justice Alan Page dissented, writing that allegations of deceptive and false advertising "do not relate..generally to the use of tobacco...and therefore are not released by the terms of the 1998 Settlement Agreement."

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You can now fly Spirit Air out of Minneapolis-St. Paul International. The low-cost carrier begins flying today out of Terminal Two, formerly known as the Humphrey Terminal. Airport spokesman Pat Hogan says Spirit Air is offering three non-stop daily flights to Chicago and one daily flight to Las Vegas. Hogan says there is still a chance that Spirit Air will add more destinations in the future.

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Here are the winning numbers from the Minnesota State Lottery for Thursday, May 31st, 2012. The Daily Three: 1-6-9. Northstar Cash: 2-7-13-17-28.

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