NEWS
--There will be a send off for the Upsala Lady Cardinal Softball Team on Wednesday at 12:15pm in the main gym in Upsala High School. The team will then be escorted out of town by the Upsala Fire Department and others around 12:45pm on Highway 238 going down Main Street in Upsala. The softball team will play Randolph in the Class A State Quarterfinals on Thursday at 1pm in Mankato. Tickets for the game need to be purchased online at the mshsl.org/tickets website. This is the first time in team history they are going to state.
--On May 11th, the City of Little Falls’ application for Minnesota Investment Fund assistance through the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development was approved. Lakeshirts will be receiving a grant in the amount of $450,000 to assist with the purchase of machinery and equipment to aid in expanding their business in Little Falls. This expansion will result in the creation of 78 new jobs for Little Falls community.
--The Little Falls Fire Department was dispatched to Aldi market on Sunday around 2:20pm on a report of an electrical panel on the outside of the building that was smoking. Firefighters arrived and found some wires that shorted out in conduit underground near the electrical panel. They waited at the scene until Minnesota Power arrived to resolve the issue and it was determined all was safe.
--The St. Cloud Police Department is investigating a shooting that sent two people to the hospital Sunday evening. Authorities say shortly after 5:00pm officers responded to reports of a gunshot near Haws Park in the 800 block of 13th Street South in St. Cloud. Upon arrival, officers found many people and vehicles leaving the park. Police say witnesses told them one shot had been fired and one person may have been shot during an altercation near the basketball court. Authorities say the suspect and any potential victims had already left the scene. About 20 minutes later, police say two St. Cloud men, a 21-year-old and a 28-year-old, went to the St. Cloud Hospital for treatment of non-life-threatening gunshot-related injuries. The police department says they do not believe it was a random incident. Anyone with information is asked to contact the St. Cloud Police Department or Tri-County Crime Stoppers.
--Sartell police responded to a report of gunshots fired on Sunday afternoon. At about 2:30pm Sartell officers were dispatched to a shots fired call in the 400 block of 3rd Street South. When officers arrived the suspects had already left the scene and were no longer in the area. No one was reported to have been hurt. Vehicles and other private property were struck by gunfire. The incident is currently under investigation. As of late Monday no arrests have been made.
--Governor Tim Walz signed a bill that will fund 80 environment and natural resources projects with the goal of protecting Minnesota’s air, water, land, fish, wildlife, and other outdoor resources. The Governor then wrote to legislators urging them to work toward reforming the vetting process for future projects to prioritize citizens’ voices and remove politics from the process. Projects are typically vetted by the Legislative-Citizen Commission on Minnesota Resources (LCCMR). However, the LCCMR did not provide recommendations for fiscal year 2023, as they were unable to come to an agreement and pass recommendations with the super majority required. This bill is based on two separate motions brought at the LCCMR, but also includes 12 additional projects introduced by legislators and not vetted by citizens on the commission. Governor Walz urged legislators to meet a compromise and asked to cease on using unvetted projects in future.
--A South Haven man is hurt after his motorcycle was hit by a car Monday morning. The Stearns County Sheriff's Office says the crash happened at the intersection of County Roads 7 and 146 in Fairhaven Township just before 7:30am. Authorities say 60-year old Christopher Pull was northbound on County Road 7 when a car driven by 24-year old Evan Clifford hit him in the intersection. The sheriff's Office says Clifford went through a stop sign and struck Pull's bike throwing him off the motorcycle. Clifford's car then rolled over into the ditch. The sheriff's office says Pull was wearing a helmet and other protective gear and was taken to St. Cloud Hospital for treatment of minor injuries. Clifford was not hurt but was cited for careless driving.
--A Hennepin County judge has granted a motion to delay the state trial for former Minneapolis police officers Tou Thao and J. Alexander Kueng, both charged in connection with the murder of George Floyd.
On Monday, Judge Peter Cahill granted the defense's motion to continue the trial until January 5th, 2023. The trial was initially scheduled to begin on next Monday. Attorneys for Thao and Kueng asked Cahill to delay the trial or move it out of Hennepin County because of "overwhelming pretrial publicity" that would impact the ability to find a "fair and impartial jury." In his memo, Cahill agreed with the defense. Thomas Lane pleading guilty to his state charges and the fact that all three former officers (Lane, Thao and Kueng) were found guilty in a federal civil rights trial could make it difficult for jurors to be impartial and unbiased.
--The 3rd Annual Brewski's for New skis fundraiser to support the Little Falls High School Nordic Ski Team will be Thursday from 4-9pm at Starry Eyed Brewing Company. There will be raffles for prizes and this is family friendly event to help out the Nordic Ski team in Little Falls.
--Holy Family-Belle Prairie Heritage Festival is this Sunday with Mass at 10:30am, music, quilt raffle, cash bingo, kids games and much more this Sunday on the parish grounds in Belle Prairie.
DEATH NOTICES
--Genevieve M. Waller, age 87 of Little Falls
--Grace M. Boser, age 78 of Pierz
WEATHER
TODAY= mostly cloudy, possible PM shower, high 71.
TONIGHT= showers early tonight, then cloudy, low 48.
WEDNESDAY= AM shower, then sunny, high 74, low around 51.
THURSDAY= sunny skies, high around 75, low around 50.
SPORTS
TWINS= Twins open series with New York Yankees tonight, pregame begins at 6pm on Q92 WYRQ.
HS BAB= Pierz wins 7-3 over Annandale Monday to stay alive in the playoffs. Pierz has another elimination game today against Eden Valley Watkins at 4:30pm in St. Cloud with the winner then playing Wadena-Deer Creek around 7pm tonight in St. Cloud to advance to the section championship Thursday. Listen to Pierz baseball throughout the playoffs live on 94ROCKS KFML.
HS BAB= Little Falls vs. Alexandria in playoff baseball Wednesday from St. Cloud at 4pm where if Little Falls wins they would play again around 6pm for the section title live on AM960 KLTF.
HS BAB= Upsala/Swanville still alive in the baseball playoffs today against Ashby, win and they play again trying to get to section title.
HS SB= Upsala opens the State Softball Tournament with Randolph Thursday at 1pm in Mankato. Live coverage on 94ROCKS KFML.