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TEACHER OF THE YEAR-MINNESOTA

Rochester high school teacher named MN Teacher of the Year

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — An English language and ethnic studies teacher at Century High School in Rochester has been named the Minnesota Teacher of the Year for 2021. Natalia Benjamin is the first Latino educator to receive the award. She’s the first from the Rochester district to win the award, which is organized by Education Minnesota, the statewide teachers union. Benjamin was born and raised in Guatemala, where she grew up speaking, reading and writing Spanish and French and later learned English. She said her exposure to multiple languages helped her understand how children acquire language.

VIRUS OUTBREAK-MINNESOTA

Minnesota to require COVID shots or tests for state workers

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Minnesota state government employees will be required to prove they’ve been vaccinated against COVID-19 or undergo weekly testing before they can return to the office. Gov. Tim Walz has ordered that state agency employees who work in person must show proof of vaccination and attest to their immunization status by Sept. 8. Employees who haven’t been vaccinated by then will be required to test negative for the coronavirus at least once a week in order to work on site. The two biggest unions representing state government workers say they still have questions about how the new requirements will be implemented.

CLINIC SHOOTING-MINNESOTA

Suspect in clinic shootings ruled competent to stand trial

BUFFALO, Minn. (AP) — Attorneys for a man charged in the fatal shooting of a staff member and wounding of four others at a Minneapolis-area health clinic say they won’t fight a court exam that found him mentally competent to stand trial. Gregory P. Ulrich appeared Wednesday in Wright County District Court and withdrew his objection to the competency evaluation report filed in May. The judge ruled that Ulrich is competent to stand trial on murder and other charges in the shootings. Ulrich is accused of opening fire in the Allina Health Clinic in Buffalo, a small city about 40 miles northwest of Minneapolis.

TWINS-HEAT DISTRESS

Police: 1 of 2 twins found locked in hot vehicle has died

HIBBING, Minn. (AP) — Authorities say one of two twin 3-year-old boys found locked in a hot vehicle in Hibbing has died. The other twin has been released from a hospital. Hibbing police say the boys were reported missing Monday evening. Neighbors joined police in a search for the twins. About an hour later a citizen found the twins locked inside a vehicle near a residence. Officers broke the vehicle window to get them out.Both boys were unresponsive due to the extreme heat and were taken to Minnesota hospitals. Police say the surviving twin has been treated and released. Police do not suspect foul play, but investigators are considering charges.

SOUTH DAKOTA HOMICIDE

Minnesota man arrested on suspicion of South Dakota homicide

MOORHEAD, Minn. (AP) — Authorities say a Minnesota man has been arrested in connection with a 2019 homicide in eastern South Dakota. Clay County, Minnesota, Sheriff Mark Empting says an 18-year-old man from Moorhead is being held on a first degree murder charge out of Watertown, South Dakota. Moorhead Police Capt. Deric Swenson says officers apprehended the man after they were notified that an arrest warrant had been issued in South Dakota. KVRR-TV says Watertown police reported in 2019 that a 16-year-old Moorhead boy was suspected of causing the death of 43-year-old Dawn Meyer as he attempted suicide. Police says the boy was driving a car when he slammed into an SUV on U.S. Highway 212 as Meyer was on her way to work.

STATE FAIR-GUN LAWSUIT

Group sues for right to carry guns at Minnesota State Fair

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A gun owners’ group is suing the Minnesota State Fair and Ramsey County, demanding that permit holders be allowed to carry handguns on the fairgrounds during the Great Minnesota Get-Together. The lawsuit by the Minnesota Gun Owners Caucus argues that the State Fair’s ban on weapons violates the Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms. The lawsuit asks the court to order that Minnesotans who have valid carry permits be allowed to carry pistols at the fair. And it asks that the sheriff’s office, which will provide law enforcement at this year’s fair, be prohibited from enforcing the ban.

ENBRIDGE ENERGY-LINE 3

Regulator reports new spills along Line 3 construction route

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — Minnesota regulators say there have been more releases of drilling fluid along the Line 3 oil pipeline construction route than previously reported. According to the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, there were 28 releases at 12 river crossing locations from June 8 to Aug. 5. In one instance, about 80 gallons of fluid entered the Willow River in Aitkin County. Minnesota Public Radio reports that the agency disclosed details about the releases in a letter to Democratic state lawmakers who requested the information. Drilling fluid is made mostly of bentonite clay and water. It’s not considered toxic, but can impact aquatic life.

TRADE MISSION

Walz to lead trade mission to England, Finland in November

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — Gov. Tim Walz plans to lead a trade mission to England and Finland later this year. Walz will lead a delegation with about 30 representatives of the state’s medical technology, food and agriculture, environmental technology and education sectors Nov. 12-19. Walz says both the United Kingdom and Finland are important trade partners with Minnesota. Agriculture Commissioner Thom Peterson, Economic Security Commissioner Steve Grove and First Lady Gwen Walz will travel with the governor. Walz led a trade trip to South Korea in 2019 before the COVID-19 pandemic.