The city of Minneapolis has agreed to pay $1.5 million plus costs and attorneys’ fees to Jaleel Stallings, an Army veteran who sued the city after being acquitted on the grounds of self-defense after he was charged with shooting at Minneapolis police who first fired marking rounds at him.

The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension and the FBI are investigating the incident, which took place five days after the police murder of George Floyd.

As the Minneapolis Police Department struggled to regain control of the city, a SWAT team drove around Minneapolis in an unmarked van at night, firing 40-mm marking rounds at civilians out after curfew. They then beat Stallings and his companion after Stallings fired back with a pistol, unaware they were cops. He said he purposefully missed them.

Nearly a year after a jury acquitted the former St. Paul man of eight charges, including attempted murder, Stallings

Mar 30 2021

I Fought an Insurance Company in a Slip-and-Fall Case. Here’s What I Learned

Slip and Fall

This winter, after I lost my footing and shattered my arm on an icy sidewalk, I knew I faced a grueling physical recovery. What I didn’t anticipate was the weeks of wrangling with an insurance company for what was ultimately a modest settlement. My slip-and-fall homeowners insurance saga offers lessons in case you, too, ever tumble to injury on snow, wet leaves, or another hazard.

My mishap happened in front of someone’s house on a January Minneapolis evening, as I was walking my twelve-year-old dog. The fall broke both the bones in my right lower arm, and a titanium plate and screws were required to put the larger bone back together. I lost about two months of work and a major gig, and I’m still

Mar 5 2021

Traffic deaths rose 8% in 2020, despite driving fewer miles during pandemic

Auto Accidents

Pandemic lockdowns and stay-at-home orders kept many drivers off U.S. roads and highways last year. But those who did venture out found open lanes that only invited reckless driving, leading to a sharp increase in traffic-crash deaths across the country.

The nonprofit National Safety Council estimates in a report issued Thursday that 42,060 people died in vehicle crashes in 2020, an 8% increase over 2019 and the first jump in four years.

Plus, the fatality rate per 100 million miles driven spiked 24%, the largest annual percentage increase since the council began collecting data in 1923.

And even though traffic is now getting close to pre-coronavirus levels, the bad behavior on the roads is continuing, authorities say.

“It’s kind of terrifying what we’re seeing on

Jun 26 2017

Minnesota police settlements, by the numbers

Police Misconduct

The settlement between the Justine Ruszczyk family and the city of Minneapolis for $20 million after former Minneapolis police officer Mohamed Noor fatally shot her in 2017 is the largest in city history.

A jury convicted Noor of murder and manslaughter charges in the death of Ruszczyk, who was also known as Justine Damond. She had called police the night of July 15, 2017 to report a possible sexual assault in the alley behind her Minneapolis home.

According to the settlement, the family will donate $2 million to a safe communities fund.

It is not the first time cities have paid settlements to settle police officer misconduct cases.

Prior to Friday’s settlement with the Ruszczyk family, the city of Minneapolis had paid out more than $24 million in police misconduct related settlements, claims and judgments since 2003.

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