Stories from November 22, 2024

Vacant no more: Artists, creatives move into empty storefronts for new Minneapolis initiative
The city of Minneapolis awarded five arts organizations subsidized leases through its Vibrant Storefronts Initiative, aiming to transform vacant downtown spaces near Loring Park into a creative cultural hub and address the affordable space crisis for artists.
The jury in the federal human smuggling trial in Fergus Falls today returned guilty verdicts on all counts against Hari Patel and Steve Shand. The four Republican members of Minnesota's U.S. House delegation hope to influence President-elect Donald Trump's choices for federal appointments in the state. And another legal challenge looms over a Minnesota House race in the knotted-up legislative chamber.
Applicants sue Minnesota’s Office of Cannabis Management over disqualification
The OCM turned to a lottery because more than 1,800 applicants had sought 282 licenses. This week, regulators disqualified two-thirds of the applicants for a variety of reasons.
Republican who lost Minnesota House race sues claiming DFL winner lives outside district
The Roseville-area court challenge is the latest legal action Republicans are using to try and break the tie in the Minnesota House next year and muster up a majority in one chamber.
‘Meant to be’: Four years later, Black Garnet Books owner is selling, to a friend 
Dionne Sims opened Black Garnet Books with a vision, to serve Minnesota in a time of healing. As she moves on, Terresa Moses is taking over as the new owner of the Black-owned bookstore.
Defendants in human smuggling case convicted on all counts
A jury in Fergus Falls took only about an hour to return verdicts of guilty on all charges to two men accused of human smuggling. The trial arose from the hypothermia deaths of a family from India who in January 2022 were directed to walk across the border from Canada into Minnesota during a bitterly cold snowstorm.
At least 15 people are sick in Minnesota from ground beef tied to E. coli recall
U.S. health officials say at least 15 people in Minnesota have been sickened by E. coli poisoning tied to a national recall of more than 160,000 pounds of potentially tainted ground beef.
Dr. Marty Makary on medicine's blind spots
Dr. Marty Makary says data misinterpretation and conventional thinking is not serving us well — and he wants to change that. His new book, “Blind Spots,” details when medicine got it wrong and then resisted making it right.
Woman to Woman: Artist Hend Al-Mansour celebrates women and Islamic art
Hend Al-Mansour’s new exhibition, “Contain Me,” opening Nov. 23 at SOO Visual Art Center in Minneapolis, celebrates Khadijah and Hafsah, wives of the Prophet Muhammad, through kaleidoscopic video animations and painted illustrations that honor their influence on early Islam while reclaiming Al-Mansour’s place as a woman in Islamic art.
House passes bill that would allow Treasury to target nonprofits it deems to support terrorism
The U.S. House passed legislation that would give the Treasury Department unilateral authority to strip the tax-exempt status of nonprofits it claims support terrorism. It is a proposal that has alarmed civil liberties groups about how a second Trump presidency could use it to punish political opponents.
He was stuck in a hospital for 8 months. How states can fail people with disabilities
In Georgia and other states, the federal government oversees the treatment of people with mental illness and developmental disabilities, because the states have been unable to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act and the subsequent Olmstead ruling.
Trump names former Florida AG Pam Bondi as his new pick for U.S. attorney general
After former Rep. Matt Gaetz withdrew from consideration, President-elect Donald Trump named Pam Bondi, a former attorney general of Florida, as his next pick for U.S. attorney general.
Democratic incumbent Rep. Brad Tabke leads his Republican challenger by 15 votes in a Shakopee-area legislative race. And a federal human smuggling case taking place in Fergus Falls is coming to a close.
Milder through the weekend. Light snow and colder air coming next week
We’ll see peeks of sun Friday with lighter winds. Temperatures will run slightly above normal through Sunday, but a clipper system will bring light snow, sprinkles and colder air through next week.
Here’s how Trump and the GOP may try to weaken Obamacare
Republican control of the White House and Congress sets the stage for potentially seismic changes including curtailing Medicaid, weakening patient protections, and increasing premium costs for millions.
Minnesota hospitals navigate IV fluid shortage  
After Hurricane Helene shut down production of the world’s largest IV fluid manufacturer, Minnesota hospitals scrambled to find new sources and canceled some surgeries. Weeks later, the hospitals report varying levels of normalcy with the help of new conservation methods. 
Closing arguments delivered in federal human smuggling case
After hearing three and a half days of testimony, the jury in a federal human smuggling case will begin deliberating judgement Friday. Two Florida men face charges alleging they brought migrants from India into the U.S. illegally.
Minneapolis continues with construction plans for George Floyd Square
The Minneapolis City Council’s Climate & Infrastructure Committee voted unanimously Thursday to advance the conversation about plans for George Floyd Square and the intersection of 38th Street and Chicago Avenue.