NEWS --The 2017 Morrison County Child Care Provider of the Year has been selected. It is Jodi Prokott of Little Falls. Prokott has been doing daycare for over 7 years. Jodi will be honored at the Morrison County Provider of the Year Banquet. Invitations will be sent out to all the Morrison County Child Care Providers.
--The 39th Annual Massed Band Concert for the District 482 Schools grades 5-12 and Mary of Lourdes 8th graders is tonight at 7:00pm at the High School in Little Falls. There is also a food drive. Bring a non-perishable food items and get a dollar off the ticket price, $3 for adults and $1 for students. They want to get 1,000 pounds of food.
--Crosby Mayor 68-year old Jim Hunter was booked into the Crow Wing County jail on suspicion of three felonies after his arrest Friday. Jail records show Hunter was booked into jail on suspicion of theft by swindle, second-degree assault with a dangerous weapon and lawful gambling fraud crimes.
--Crow Wing County Sheriff Todd Dahl reports the arrest of a 35 year old Brainerd man for 1st degree burglary and 5th Degree Criminal Sexual Conduct. Around 4:50pm on Wednesday, the Crow Wing County Sheriff’s Office received a call from a resident in Brainerd, who stated he arrived home and found an unknown male in his bathroom. Upon confronting the male, he ran out of the apartment and into the woods. Shortly after deputies’ arrival, the suspect, 35-year old Gian Carlo Aamodt, was located walking down the road a short distance from the apartment complex. He was extremely intoxicated and partially dressed. Upon conducting a further investigation into the incident, deputies learned that Aamodt was previously involved in an altercation at a neighboring apartment where he had gotten into a fight and had been inappropriately grabbing a female in the apartment. Aamodt had left this apartment and gone into another apartment where he was found in the bathroom. Aamodt was then taken to the Crow Wing County Jail and booked on Burglary and Criminal Sexual Conduct charges.
--An investigation into credit card fraud and embezzlement from a creamery association in Osakis has led to felony drug charges with three people charged in the cases. 47-year old Denise Carol Waldvogel of Osakis was charged late last year with felony theft by swindle for taking an estimated $42,300 from the Osakis Creamery Association. Her husband, 45-year old Curtis Dale Waldvogel was charged with felony credit card fraud and two drug-related counts. 42-year old Tammy Lynn Popoe of Frazee, who was living at the Waldvogels' residence in Osakis, was charged late last year with possessing enough methamphetamine to be a first-degree felony. During the swindle investigation, Osakis police learned that Curtis Waldvogel allegedly used one of the creamery's Menards credit cards over a two-year period, beginning in August of 2014, to purchase items without permission. In all, Waldvogel is accused of making 33 unauthorized transactions totaling $6,334.96. Curtis Waldvogel is scheduled to appear in Douglas County District Court March 13th. An omnibus hearing for Denise Waldvogel is scheduled for March 31st. Both Waldvogels were released from jail after posting bail. An omnibus hearing for Popoe is set for March 23rd in Douglas County.
--Cass County reported another vehicle through the ice on Leech Lake making it 6 in the past 16 days. An ATV went through the lake around 2:00pm Thursday. The operator was not seriously injured.
--Minnesota lawmakers will get a raise after a newly created citizen council voted to increase the Legislature’s pay by 45 percent. The Legislative Salary Council voted 13-1 Friday to increase lawmaker’s pay to $45,000, their first raise since 1999. That’s up from $31,000, a sum that doesn’t include daily expenses and travel reimbursements that can add thousands of dollars to their paychecks. The raise takes effect July 1st. Minnesota voters created the citizen council in November by approving a constitutional amendment that removed lawmakers’ power to set their own pay. It came after years of stalled efforts at the Legislature to increase pay amid fear of political backlash. The Legislature still has to approve the extra $2.8 million of state money necessary to cover their larger paychecks.
--A Big Lake man was injured Thursday when his vehicle went off Interstate Highway 94 into a ditch near St. Cloud around 5:00pm. 39-year old John Burrage was traveling eastbound when the vehicle lost control and left the road. Burrage was taken to St. Cloud Hospital to be treated for non life threatening injuries. Authorities stated that alcohol was involved.
--A Waite Park man who was indicted on rape charges that could bring life in prison if he's convicted is scheduled to stand trial May 1st. 56-year old John William Magney was indicted in January by a Stearns County jury on two counts of first-degree criminal sexual conduct and one count of third-degree criminal sexual conduct. Magney remains in Stearns County Jail in lieu of $1 million bail.
INTERNATIONAL CATHOLIC NEWS --Pope Francis says he is open to the possibility of permitting married men to become priests to address the serious shortage of Catholic priests in some countries. He ruled out the prospect of allowing single men who are already priests to marry, but was open to the idea of allowing unmarried laymen or men already married to be ordained. However, Francis said allowing priests in training to choose whether or not to be celibate was “not the solution.” The idea of permitting married priests has been a question for many years in the church.
DEATH NOTICES --Timothy Yanta, age 57 of Little Falls.
WEATHER TODAY= partly cloudy, high 25. TONIGHT= clear skies, low around 0. TUESDAY= sunny skies, high 27, clear night low 5 above. WEDNESDAY= mostly sunny, high 35, snow showers late.
SPORTS BBB= on Saturday Kimball beat Swanville, Browerville defeated Bertha-Hewitt, Sauk Centre beat Holdingford and Cathedral eliminated Foley. Boys playoffs continue on Tuesday. The State Girls Basketball Tournament begins later this week in Minneapolis. BHK= Hermantown and Grand Rapids win Boys Hockey Titles. COL BB= Gophers beat Michigan State 63-58 Friday but then lost to Michigan 84-77 Saturday in Big 10 tournament semi-finals. Michigan defeated Wisconsin Sunday for the Big 10 Tournament Title. The Gophers found out Sunday night they are a #5 seed in the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament. The 24-9 Gophers will take on 30-4 Middle Tennessee State Thursday at 3:00pm in Milwaukee.