Grace Pastoor
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Grace Pastoor covers crime, courts and social issues for the Bemidji Pioneer. Contact her at (218) 333-9796 or gpastoor@bemidjipioneer.com
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- Member for
- 2 years 5 months
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BEMIDJI -- A Bemidji woman was charged with two felonies Wednesday after police say she broke a 3-month-old infant’s legs while babysitting.
BEMIDJI—A former employee of an adult foster home pleaded not guilty Tuesday to third-degree assault after he was accused of attacking a resident. Connor Michael Shea, 27, was arrested Feb. 27 but is no longer in custody. In court Tuesday he also waived his right to an omnibus hearing and set a date for a pretrial hearing.
BEMIDJI—Nearly a year after three Bemidji activists organized a march against white supremacy, the group hopes to use art to reignite local conversations about discrimination and inequality within the community. Dan Gannon, who helped organize the Unite Against Hate march in August in response to a white supremacy rally in Virginia, said that he wanted community members to continue to think about intolerance, even after the initial fervor died down.
BEMIDJI -- A Bemidji man suspected of crashing a stolen SUV into a light pole near the Sanford Center was charged with a felony and two misdemeanors Tuesday. Justice Lee White, 21, was arrested Monday evening after officers responded to two separate reports at about 5 p.m.: one of a stolen Ford Edge and one of a crash.
BEMIDJI—A Bemidji man was charged May 14 with first-degree drug possession after police found a large amount of methamphetamine during a traffic stop. Sky Brandon Knute, 39, was arrested May 10 after a sergeant with the Beltrami County Sheriff's Office stopped the pickup Knute was driving, which law enforcement believe was stolen.
BEMIDJI -- A Ninth District judge dismissed a first-degree drug charge April 30 after determining that law enforcement did not have probable cause to search the defendant’s home. The Beltrami County Attorney’s Office has appealed the dismissal.
BEMIDJI—A mix of about 50 police officers, deputies and civilians gathered Thursday evening to honor the 129 members of law enforcement killed in 2017. After a day of clouds and rain, the sun came out just long enough for the annual memorial ceremony, which has been held in Bemidji for more than 15 years. Beltrami County Sheriff Phil Hodapp, Bemidji Police Department Chaplain Derek Claypool and Mayor Rita Albrecht all paid their respects to the fallen officers, including one from Minnesota.
RED LAKE -- All but one of Red Lake Nation’s 2018 races resulted in runoff elections Wednesday after a majority of the 40 candidates failed to secure more than 50 percent of the vote at the polls. Only incumbent Ponemah Representative Gary Nelson was able to reach the threshold for victory according to preliminary results, defeating Chele Kalstabakken 217 to 193.
BEMIDJI -- A Fosston man who deputies say burglarized multiple fish houses on Lake Bemidji over the winter pleaded guilty to the charges Monday. Christopher Robin Braun, 40, was arrested Jan. 30 after a Beltrami County deputy discovered him briefly stopping at multiple fish houses on Lake Bemidji.
BEMIDJI—A Red Lake man who pleaded guilty in November to a burglary and a robbery received no additional jail time for the felonies. Derek Jon Paddy, 22, was sentenced to 185 days in jail for the October 2016 robbery and 172 days in jail for the June 2017 burglary. Paddy received credit for time served on both sentences. Though he was also sentenced to one year and six months in prison for the robbery and two years and three months in prison for the burglary, those sentences were stayed for five and 10 years, respectively.