First court appearance set for MPD officer charged in crash that killed Leneal Frazier

Hennepin County

Brian Cummings

Court date set. WCCO reports: “Minneapolis Police Officer Brian Cummings will make his first court appearance in November after being charged in a collision that killed 40-year-old Leneal Frazier earlier this year. … According to court documents, Cummings will make the appearance via Zoom at the Hennepin County District Court on the afternoon of Nov. 9. … On Friday, the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office announced that Cummings faces charges of second-degree manslaughter and criminal vehicular homicide.”

In case you missed this one last week. The AP’s Steve Karnowski reports: “The small-town family doctor angling to become Minnesota’s next governor smiled, leaned into the camera and told his Facebook viewers that Sweden had just paused the Moderna vaccine for people under age 30 over ‘significant concern’ about heart inflammation. … Dr. Scott Jensen, clad in a white lab coat, quickly pivoted: ’So what happens to military people who are threatened with a dishonorable discharge if they are unwilling to potentially put their heart health at risk?’ … Messages like the video have been a key part of how Jensen, a former state senator with a reputation as a moderate before the pandemic hit, has emerged as the early frontrunner among Republicans seeking to unseat Democratic Gov. Tim Walz.”

Something the delegation can agree on. Also from the AP, Mark Kennedy reports: “Minnesota’s Congressional delegation on Monday is introducing a resolution to posthumously award the Congressional Gold Medal to pop superstar Prince, citing his ‘indelible mark on Minnesota and American culture,’ The Associated Press has learned. … The medal is one of the nation’s highest civilian honors and past recipients include George Washington, the Wright Brothers, Rosa Parks, Mother Teresa, the Navajo Code Talkers, the Tuskegee Airmen and the Dalai Lama.”

Public transit in the red. The Star Tribune’s Tim Harlow reports: “Crews this week are expected to finish installing a special lane on 7th Street in downtown Minneapolis that will be reserved exclusively for transit buses. … The lane designated with bright red paint, pavement markings and signs will stretch from Chicago Avenue near HCMC to 1st Avenue N. near Target Center and the First Avenue nightclub. The city and the transit agency are sharing the $320,000 cost to put in the lane. … When it opens, Metro Transit buses will have their own space to roll 24 hours a day.”

In other news…

State stepping in: “MDH taking temporary control of Minneapolis nursing home” [KARE]

You think: “The ice is not ready yet, warns Barron County Sheriff” [KARE]

We’re not even over the whole brontosaurus thing yet: “Newly uncovered North Dakota fossils could stir T. rex vs. Nanotyrannus debate” [Fargo Forum]

Very cool: “Minneapolis tattoo artists help breast cancer survivors reclaim their bodies through art” [KSTP]