Minnesota News Briefs: Minneapolis police ID murder victim

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MINNEAPOLIS - Authorities have identified the homicide victim found lying on a street in north Minneapolis Tuesday morning.

The Hennepin County Medical Examiner says 25-year-old Cordell Dalton of Brooklyn Park died of a gunshot wound. Minneapolis police are still searching for a suspect.

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The Salvation Army is holding its annual "Coats for Kids" distribution today (Thurs) in the Twin Cities metro. Spokeswoman Annette Bauer says they are giving away seven-thousand coats today, two-thousand more than last year. Bauer says when families come in they also ask them if they have other needs that the Salvation Army is able to fill. Bauer says coat drives are also under way in Greater Minnesota. Contact your local Salvation Army chapter for details.

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Ten years ago today, Senator Paul Wellstone was killed in a plane crash in northeastern Minnesota and there's a remembrance ceremony this afternoon in Eveleth. Wellstone, his wife Sheila, daughter Marcia, three campaign workers and two pilots died when their plane went down near Eveleth airport. The crash happened just days before the election against Republican challenger Norm Coleman. Former Vice-President Walter Mondale jumped into the race at the urging of Wellstone's family. He did not win the election, but Mondale says "at least we had a week there of a campaign where I hope that Paul's voice was heard." Mondale says the controversial and emotional Wellstone memorial service probably contributed to his defeat. He says Wellstone's death is a tragedy he will never forget.

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One of the bright spots in the September housing report is a seven-point-two-percent increase in the median sale price statewide. Chris Galler with the Minnesota Association of Realtors says it rose to $150,000 dollars last month. He says that's the midpoint for prices so there's as many sold above as below that. And we've started to turn the corner since the beginning of the year where we have month after month of appreciating numbers in the median home price. Galler says there's a lot less lower-priced inventory and prices are now more reflective of a normalized real estate market. Homes are selling eight percent faster than last September, but closed sales were down nearly six percent.

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A federal health panel, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, now recommends every pregnant woman get vaccinated for pertussis, otherwise known as whooping cough. Kris Ehresmann with the Minnesota Department of Health says this is to make sure that you have the highest level of antibody to pass on to your baby, so he or she will be protected in those early months of life. Ehresmann says the panel's vote was a reaction to the resurgence in whooping cough cases. She says the nation is on track to have the worst year for whooping cough since the 1950s. Minnesota is also seeing record levels of pertussis.

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A Shakopee woman is dead after losing control of her car on an exit ramp southwest of the Twin Cities. The State Patrol says 26-year-old Trachanda Hamilton died when the car hit a tree. Her four-year-old son survived the crash with just minor injuries.

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On a morning when early season snow is flying, Minneapolis-based Arctic Cat is out with a report of record earnings. The off-road vehicle maker says net earnings were up 41-percent to a record $27-million over the last six months, thanks to a 19-percent jump in ATV sales and a 12-percent increase among its snowmobiles.

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Police in the Twin Cities suburb of Chaska say the facts aren't adding up in the death of a teenager who was killed by an arrow shot by his best friend. Police have reportedly handed the case over to the Carver County prosecutor after finding their investigation does not match the story given by the boy who shot the arrow which injured 16-year-old Spencer Swanson. Swanson was hit by the arrow while on his bike on October 13th. He died two days later.

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The director of church outreach director for a group that supports the marriage amendment apologized Wednesday for comparing the opposition's tactics to those of Adolph Hitler. The Reverend Brad Brandon with Minnesota for Marriage told a Brainerd group earlier that Hitler suppressed religious freedom, which is what's at stake in the marriage debate. Rabbi Marcia Zimmerman with Temple Israel in Minneapolis reacted, calling the reference "extremely hurtful to the Jewish community where many of us, children and grandchildren of Holocaust survivors, the misuse of this is hurtful." Brandon issued a statement saying he never stated or meant to imply that those who oppose the marriage amendment are somehow equivalent to the Nazis.

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Almost 1,200 trained volunteers fan out across Minnesota today for an every-three-years survey of homelessness in the state. Wilder Foundation researcher Greg Owen says they'll go to about 300 different sites, including foodshelves, emergency shelters, battered women's shelters, transitional housing -- even under bridges and in abandoned buildings. Owens says in the next 72 hours they'll likely do six thousand interviews, each with a couple hundred questions. Preliminary data will be available next spring.

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An award-winning vodka made in Minnesota is now owned by a California winemaking giant. Gallo has bought the trademark of Shakers Vodka, made from Minnesota wheat in the city of Benson. The owners of Shakers filed for bankruptcy around the start of this year. There's no word yet on what affect the purchase will have on the vodka.

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St. Paul police have killed two suspects in separate shootings which also left an officer wounded. The latest happened last night as police investigated a residential theft on the city's east side. Responding police say they had to use deadly force after the suspect opened fire on them, hitting their squad car and one of the officers. The officer is hospitalized in stable condition and is expected to undergo surgery today. In the other incident Tuesday, police fatally shot a man who had been wanted for questioning in a drug investigation.

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Minneapolis Mayor R. T. Rybak has formally nominated Assistant Police Chief Janee Harteau to be the city's next police chief. Current Chief Tim Dolan is retiring in December. Rybak says Harteau, a 25-year veteran of the Minneapolis Police Department, has proven her readiness to lead. The city council is expected to vote on Harteau's confirmation November 30th. If confirmed, Harteau would be the city's first female police chief.

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A Granite Falls man is dead after a two-vehicle crash Tuesday afternoon in Yellow Medicine County. The State Patrol says a van driven by 80-year-old Roger Tjosvold made a left turn in front of a pickup on Highway 212. Tjosvold was taken to the Granite Falls Hospital where he died last night. The 70-year-old Granite Falls woman driving the pickup suffered non-life-threatening injuries. The accident report indicates Tjosvold was not wearing a seat belt.

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A Deer River woman will serve 30 days in the Itasca County jail after pleading guilty to stealing 57-hundred dollars while working at the Minnesota Department of Motor Vehicles office in Grand Rapids. The judge stayed 32-year-old Crystal Wilson's sentence and placed her on five years probation. She also has to pay restitution, send a letter of apology to her victims and complete 20 hours of community service per week.

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The campaign of 6th District DFL candidate Jim Graves is touting the endorsement of former Republican Governor Arne Carlson. Last night (Tues) in Saint Cloud, Carlson said "we have a lot of people who talk about growing jobs, but very few who ever did. Jim Graves knows how to do it." Republican Party Chair Pat Shortridge dismissed Carlson's support of Graves saying, "trotting out Arne Carlson every two years to endorse Democrats is on par with the DFL calling for higher taxes and scaring seniors." Graves is challenging incumbent GOP Congresswoman Michele Bachmann. Carlson is vocal critic of Bachmann and has a history of endorsing candidates outside the GOP.

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Gas prices continue to fall. The average price for a gallon of unleaded is right around $3.43 Gail Weinholzer with Triple A Minnesota says that's about 20 cents lower than the national average. Weinholzer says the price of crude oil has slipped below 90 dollars a barrel and we're also out of the summer driving season, so demand has slackened. Weinholzer says gas prices are expected to climb a little around the Thanksgiving travel days.

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