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Capitol View®
Bill Wareham

Daily Digest: Gun control measures clear House

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Good morning. Time for your Tuesday Digest.

1. House passes gun control measures. A pair of contentious gun-control provisions won approval late Monday night in the  Minnesota House, withstanding Republican-led efforts to remove them from a wide-ranging public safety bill. One provision would expand criminal background check requirements for several types of gun transactions. The other allows authorities to temporarily keep guns away from people deemed a risk to themselves or others. Both measures were the focus of an intense committee hearing earlier in the session. House Democrats included the two gun-control provisions in the omnibus bill rather than put them to a vote as standalone bills. Rep. Dave Pinto, DFL-St. Paul, the author of the background check measure, said the changes would keep guns out of the hands of dangerous people.“ As policy makers we want to bold. We want to be innovative. But in fact, there is no way in which these provisions are breaking new ground,” he said. "These are in use around the country. Legislatures, governors, Republican, Democratic, they’re keeping the residents of those states safer, and Minnesota should take the same step as well.” (MPR News)

2. Senate votes to repeal 'marital rape' law. Jenny Teeson has told Minnesota lawmakers many times, often in explicit detail, the story of being sexually assaulted by her former husband — and how he all but escaped justice. On Monday, the 39-year-old Andover woman saw her persistence pay off as the Minnesota Senate voted unanimously to repeal a decades-old law that sometimes shields spouses and domestic partners from prosecution for marital rape. “There’s real power when you’re in a survivor mentality and not a victim mentality to be able to tell your story for good,” Teeson said. After the Senate’s 66-0 vote, Gov. Tim Walz could sign the repeal later this week, striking Minnesota from the ledger of states that still have loopholes that make it difficult under certain circumstances to prosecute men for sexual assault. (Star Tribune)

3. House gas tax approval sets up fight with Senate. The Minnesota House voted 74-58 Monday to raise the state gas tax for the first time in five years and make future increases easier to come by. But opposition in the Republican-controlled Senate means a state-prescribed cost hike isn’t likely at the gas pump anytime soon. The House bill would increase various transportation-related charges by $1.3 billion over the next two years to pay for road and bridge construction, as well as mass transit projects. Minnesota has only slowly chipped away at a mounting project backlog, says Rep. Frank Hornstein, DFL-Minneapolis and chair of the House Transportation Committee. He says the problem calls for a bold solution. “We’ve cobbled together short-term plans that barely scratch the surface in terms of addressing our needs,” he said during Monday’s floor debate. “So we need a reliable, sustainable transportation funding system that can weather the storm of recession and budget deficits and to keep up with the needs of our growing state.” A lot of the new money would come through a higher gas tax. It would rise 20 cents a gallon over four years and then be tied to inflation after that. The per-gallon tax is 28.5 cents now. Rep. Jon Koznik, R-Lakeville, says the transportation bill amounts to “highway robbery.” He says Minnesota’s transportation network can be repaired or expanded within existing resources rather than new taxes. “And the Democrats want to tax you left and right on it, whether it’s a gas tax, a sales tax and your tab fee increases. This bill moves Minnesota families in reverse,” he said. (MPR News)

4. Jury deliberates Noor charges. Prosecutors and defense attorneys finished their closing arguments Monday in the trial of Mohamed Noor, leaving jurors to decide the fate of the ex-Minneapolis officer charged in the killing of 911 caller Justine Ruszczyk. Noor is charged with second-degree murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter in the shooting death of Ruszczyk, who'd called to report a possible sexual assault in the alley behind her home on July 15, 2017. In her closing arguments Monday, Assistant Hennepin County Attorney Amy Sweasy emphasized the tragic circumstances around the killing. She highlighted inconsistencies in testimony between Noor and his partner that night, officer Matthew Harrity, especially on the question of whether Harrity had problems drawing his gun. "They both can't be right," she said. Defense attorney Thomas Plunkett began his closing remarks by smacking a courtroom table, shouting and pointing his finger as if firing a gun. "That's the whole case right there," he said. (MPR News)

5. Lake a) Calhoun, or b) Bde Maka Ska. Lake Calhoun is back on the map. The state Court of Appeals ruled Monday that former Department of Natural Resources Commissioner Tom Landwehr lacked authority last year to change the name of the lake to Bde Maka Ska (White Earth Lake), so the lake's name legally remains Calhoun. Erick Kaardal, a lawyer representing "Save Lake Calhoun," a group that opposed renaming the lake, called the decision "a win for holding the system accountable." He added: "We don't have to pronounce Bde Maka Ska." But then again, maybe we will. Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board President Brad Bourn said in a statement Monday that the lake was called Bde Maka Ska for generations before white settlers, he said, "stole it" from the Dakota. Minneapolis Park Board members said they have no intention of honoring the decision, and some legislators are already pushing for a vote to allow the Dakota name to stay. That vote could come in the House as early as Tuesday. (Star Tribune)