Minnesota News Roundup: Proposed bill would boost minimum wage

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ST. PAUL - A bill has been introduced in the Minnesota legislature that sponsors say would strengthen the state's working families.

Brooklyn Park DFL Representative Melissa Hortman says the Family Economic Security Act would expand child care access, increase the minimum wage to $9.50, and enhance family friendly tax credits. She also says it encourages families to continue working to try to escape poverty but it also makes it more possible for them to support their families on the income they are bringing home. Over the past 30 years, wages for lower and middle income Minnesotans have stagnated, while Hortman says housing, child care, energy, transportation, and health care costs have all continued to rise. Minnesota's minimum wage is at only $6.15, which is below the federal minimum of $7.25.

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The “Minnesota Child Victims Act” has been introduced in the state House, and the goal of the legislation is to make it easier for Minnesotans who were sexually abused as children to bring civil lawsuits. Sponsor DFL Senator Ron Latz of Golden Valley says it's pretty simple and straightforward, and gives the victims of child abuse to hold the people and institutions that allowed the abuse to happen accountable. Current state law requires victims to come forward before 24 years of age, but if the bill is passed into law, victims could file a lawsuit at any time no matter how long ago the abuse occurred.

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St. Paul police say the man who stabbed a police dog to death and was then killed by officers was wanted for molesting a 7-year-old girl. The criminal complaint says the abuse continued until the female relative became pregnant at the age of 14. The North Star Fugitive Task Force was trying to arrest 32-year-old Alden Anderson on charges of first-degree criminal sexual conduct when he was shot Tuesday afternoon in the basement of a house in St. Paul. The charges against Anderson were filed Monday in Ramsey County District Court. The girl gave birth in August 2006. It's the fourth time in five months that St. Paul police have been involved in a fatal officer-involved shooting.

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The brother of a Big Lake man acquitted in the 1992 murder of a five-year-old girl has been arrested for child pornography possession. Prosecutors say 44-year-old Peter Guevera's wife called police immediately, eight months ago, after finding pictures of naked children on her husband's flash drive while she was looking for family photos. Investigators found hundreds of child porn images of children of both sexes between the ages of four and 14, some of them of children engaged in sex acts. The couple has since divorced. Robert Guevera was found not guilty in a highly publicized 1993 trial of the murder of 5-year-old Corrine Erstad. Big Lake police say there is no connection between the current child pornography case and the Erstad case from 1992.

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A new legislative proposal introduced in the Minnesota Senate was written in response to the concerns of nurses across the state. DFL Senator Jeff Hayden of Minneapolis says the Standards of Care Act would ensure that hospitals have enough nurses on duty to properly care for patients, on every shift. The bill requires all Minnesota hospitals to abide by standards established by national nursing organizations. Hayden says more than 60 research studies show that safe staffing levels eliminate unnecessary complications, reduce preventable medical errors, and curb extended hospital stays...not just reducing health care costs but also reducing risks to patients.

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Minneapolis Police say the conditions inside a home where a woman trying to help animals in need were so deplorable that it's been boarded up and deemed unfit to live in. Animal Control officers removed dozens of cats, both alive and dead, from the house; a total of 38 cats, 20 dead cats and four dogs. The surviving animals were taken to the Minneapolis Animal Control Shelter, and will be evaluated to determine if they can be put up for adoption. Police went to the house after a probation officer found the woman was living in filth.

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A Minnesota high school hockey player has been kicked off the team for scoring on his own goal and making an obscene gesture at coaches. Administrators at Farmington schools say senior goaltender Austin Krause is no longer a team member, but won't say whether he quit or was given the boot. It comes after a 13 second video went viral on the Internet, showing Krause “pushing the puck into the Farmington net and then leaving the game with a show of unsportsmanlike gestures,’’ according to the district statement. The goal for the Chaska team tied the game and contributed to a loss on senior night.

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Governor Mark Dayton defended his budget proposal at a public forum last last night in St. Joseph. Speaking at the College of St. Benedict, Dayton said everyone needs to chip in and pay their fair share of taxes. He says it's certainly unfair when the wealthiest one percent pay about one-fourth less than middle-income families. The governor also made a pitch for an increase in higher education spending. He said Minnesota needs to "put money where our values are."

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The House Public Safety Finance and Policy Committee heard testimony this morning on a bill that would strengthen the penalties for sex offenders. The bill's sponsor, Republican Representative Andrea Kieffer, says it targets repeat offenders of more minor, 5th degree sex crimes. She says it gives prosecutors another tool to say "stop doing this or we're going to charge you with a felony next time." Kieffer introduced the same legislation last session, but it didn't go to a vote.

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The Minnesota Insurance Marketplace Act is being debated today in the state Senate Health and Human Services Division. As part of the federal Affordable Care Act, the insurance exchange is an Online portal that will give low and moderate income families one place to shop among several insurance plans, and choose the one that best meets their needs. DFL state Senator Tony Lourey of Kerrick says it's the only way those Minnesotans are going to be able access new federal tax credits and subsidies to help finance and reduce the cost of health care coverage. The exchange will serve one out of every five Minnesotans -- or around 1.2 million people.

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After nearly five years of service, the Sun Country Airlines Board of Directors has replaced Stan Gadek with an interim president and CEO. The decision was announced Wednesday that Gadek will be replaced by John Fredericksen who has been with the Mendota Heights-based carrier for 10 years. Gadek took over as Sun Country's CEO after serving as the company's chief financial officer from 2000 to 2008. Gadek was instrumental in guiding the airline through the recession and a bankruptcy stemming from former owner Tom Petters. Petters was later convicted in a multi-billion dollar Ponzi scheme.

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A physician at the New Ulm Medical Center is facing three felony charges for allegedly stealing pain medication from a vulnerable adult. Investigators say 59-year-old Doctor David Miller stole about 60 Oxycontin pills and tried to cover it up by putting over-the-counter drugs in the bottle. Police set up hidden cameras and recorded Dr. Miller pocketing pills from a patient that were later found on him. Authorities are trying to determine if there are more victims and whether additional medication was stolen from the hospital.

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