Appeals Court strikes down Minnesota’s phone stalking law

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The Minnesota Court of Appeals ruled Monday that a state law that makes it a crime to stalk someone by telephone is unconstitutional because it’s too broad.

The ruling overturns the conviction of a man who authorities say repeatedly left threatening messages for Rice County Sheriff’s Department and Social Services Department workers in 2016 and 2017.

Jason Peterson had called the Rice County sheriff, child protection workers, and others to complain about a 2002 family law case that changed his child custody and visitation. His messages contained profanity and left employees feeling frightened, prosecutors said. A jury convicted Peterson of two counts of stalking by telephone and he was sentenced to serve a year in jail.

Peterson argued that his convictions should be reversed because the statute criminalizing phone stalking unconstitutionally restricts free speech. The appeals court agreed and invalidated the statute.

Rice County Attorney John Fossum said the decision is not what the state expected. He said the state will review the ruling more carefully and determine whether or not it’s appropriate to appeal to the Minnesota Supreme Court.

The appeals court found that Minnesota’s stalking-by-telephone statute is similar to the state’s stalking-by-mail statute, which the state Supreme Court struck down because it was too broad and prohibited and chilled protected expression.

The appeals court said the phone stalking statute also criminalizes a substantial amount of protected speech and that there was no way for the court to narrow it. It said that under current law, a person could be charged for repeatedly calling a business to complain about pollution, or a worried parent could be charged for repeatedly texting a child — even if they don’t intend to frighten or intimidate the people they were calling.

Minnesota deputy says man aimed gun at him before shooting

STILLWATER (AP) — A Minnesota sheriff’s deputy who faces trial in the April 2018 fatal shooting of a suicidal man says he had no choice but to shoot because he saw the man aim a gun at him and another deputy.

Washington County Sheriff’s Deputy Brian Krook is charged with second-degree manslaughter in the shooting death of Brian Evans, 23. Evans was shot near his home in Lake Elmo after Krook and other deputies responded to a report of a suicidal man with a gun.

Krook told a grand jury in July that Evans pointed a gun at him, according to defense documents that ask for the case to be dismissed. Prosecutors dispute that account, saying Evans did not aim at officers and repeatedly said he did not want to harm them. A hearing on the issue was held Monday in Stillwater, the Star Tribune reported.

According to defense attorneys, Krook told the grand jury that Evans’ movements with the gun were getting “close to where it’s pointing at us, and I am getting uncomfortable.” He said that he was worried if Evans turned his head, the bullet would come at Krook or other deputies. “So I, and at one point, make a comment like I’m not comfortable with him turning his head,” Krook said.

Krook said that Evans turned his head even further, toward Deputy Michael Ramos, “so I fired, um I just fired,” according to defense documents.

Krook gave a similar statement to state investigators, saying he believed Evans’ gun was “pointed at Ramos … so that’s what I was concerned about,” according to the defense.

Prosecutors said another deputy didn’t consider shooting Evans during the roughly 40 minutes they were trying to negotiate his surrender as he held a gun to his head. Prosecutors also pointed out that in the final minutes before shots were fired, Evans turned his head 13 times in one direction or another.

Krook’s colleagues told the grand jury they feared Evans would shoot them or himself unless he could call his girlfriend, defense attorneys said.

Sheriff’s Sgt. Michelle Folendorf said Evans ignored orders to drop his gun and “was getting a little more amped up and agitated, and that’s when he just yelled out you’ve got two minutes. … To me that meant you have two minutes to give me the phone or I’m going to shoot one of these citizens out here … he’s going to shoot one of us, or he’s going to shoot himself.”

Ramos told the grand jury that Evans “didn’t aim at us, but kind of flagged us. Like when moving the gun, just kind of points in our direction. I don’t know if it was intentional or not.”

Evans had studied to be a firefighter and was working as an emergency medical technician, family attorneys said. The standoff began shortly after his girlfriend rejected his plea to marry him, the defense said.

Deep freeze headed for Minnesota, Wisconsin, Dakotas

DULUTH (AP) — A wintry storm system is expected to generate 10 inches of snow or more near Lake Superior before a deep freeze settles into the region.

The National Weather Service issued a winter storm warning for northeastern Minnesota and northwestern Wisconsin Monday.

The port cities of Duluth and Superior, Wisconsin are still digging out from more than 20 inches of snow last weekend.

Near record cold temperatures are expected to descend on the region after the snow moves out. Forecasters expected the high temperature to stay below zero in Fargo, North Dakota today and Wednesday.

Blowing and drifting snow was making travel difficult in South Dakota where some schools have delayed the start of classes Monday.