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IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — A judge has condemned an Iowa police chief for using his city-issued stun gun to shock guests at two parties in 2016, calling it an “immoral activity” that could have caused serious injuries or death. Judge Nancy Whittenburg recently rejected arguments by Craig Merrill, the police chief in Armstrong, that his deployment of the Taser device in an off-duty, social setting against voluntary participants was not a criminal act. “Merrill did not have justification to use a defensive weapon with the intent to cause pain for entertainment purposes on compliant partygoers,” Whittenburg wrote in a ruling [...]

On June 7th, 2021 Agents with the Minnesota River Valley Drug Task Force received information on the whereabouts of Tyler Anthony Caputo, who had an active warrant issued by the Department of Corrections for violating the terms of his supervised release from prison. During a surveillance operation on June 7th DTF Agents observed Caputo leave an apartment complex in Fairmont. Caputo attempted to flee; however, he was quickly apprehended by Officers from the Fairmont Police Department and Martin County Sheriff’s Deputies. During a search of Caputo’s person arresting officers located a loaded 12-gauge shotgun which had been modified by removing the [...]

There will be a blood drive in Sherburn Monday from 1 to 6 p.m. at the Regional Worship Center. The American Red Cross urges eligible donors to give to help ensure a stable and diverse blood supply. Blood donors of all types are needed, especially those with AB Negative, O Negative and A Negative. To learn more or to make an appointment, call 1-800-733-2767, visit redcrossblood.org, or download the free Red Cross Blood Donor App.

An explosion occurred at Christensen Farms near Sleepy Eye Tuesday morning. The Brown County Sheriff’s Office says it happened at the feed mill on-site just after 5 a.m. Nobody was injured, and no animals were in the vicinity of the explosion. There is no suspected foul play involved. The amount of value of the damage is undetermined at this time. The incident is being investigated by the Minnesota State Fire Marshall’s Office. Meanwhile, later on Tuesday multiple emergency crews were on the scene of an explosion at a New Ulm grain elevator. At 6:37 p.m., the New Ulm Fire Department and [...]

(AP) - The world’s largest meat processing company is getting back online after production around the world was disrupted by a cyberattack just weeks after a similar incident shut down a U.S. oil pipeline. Brazil’s JBS SA said late Tuesday that it had made “significant progress” in dealing with the cyberattack and expected the “vast majority” of its plants to be operating on Wednesday. “Our systems are coming back online and we are not sparing any resources to fight this threat,” Andre Nogueira, CEO of JBS USA, said in a statement. Earlier, the White House said JBS had notified the U.S. [...]

The Martin County Sheriff's Office responded to a possible assault in Ceylon on Wednesday afternoon. A female was transported from the scene to Mayo Clinic Health System in Fairmont and later transferred to Mayo Clinic in Rochester for further medical treatment. Agencies that assisted with the incident include the Martin County Sheriff's Office, Minnesota BCA, Ceylon First Responders, Welcome First Responders, Dunnell First Responders, Sherburn Ambulance, and Mayo Ambulance. The incident is under investigation and more information will be made available as time permits.

FAIRMONT, Minn. — Mayo Clinic Health System in Fairmont recently announced recipients of its 2021 Blanche Kindstrom Hospital Auxiliary Scholarships. The scholarships are given each year to local students who are pursuing a health profession field of study. This year’s $1,000 scholarship recipients were: • Bryn Miller of Fairmont High School. • Tea Armstrong of Blue Earth Area High School.

ALBERT LEA, Minn. (AP) — Authorities say there is no risk to the public as cleanup continues on a train derailment in southeastern Minnesota. The train left the tracks near Goose Lake in Albert Lea about 1:30 p.m. Saturday, the Albert Lea Police Department said in a Facebook post. More than 20 cars derailed. There were no injuries. Union Pacific Railroad crews led cleanup efforts over Saturday night and through Sunday, according to police. They had cleared eight cars from the track as of Sunday morning. Crews also set up air quality monitoring units, which had detected no airborne substances, according [...]

UNOFFICIAL RESULTS City of Armstrong Special Election to Fill the Vacancy of Mayor Tuesday, May 11, 2021 Election Day Absentee Total Travis Schueller 134 19 153 Dave Grussing, Write-In 107 15 122 *Please note that results are UNOFFICIAL until the Emmet County Board of Supervisors Canvasses the Results on Tuesday, May 18, 2021