Starting tomorrow motorcyclists in Minnesota will be allowed to maneuver between lanes of traffic in certain conditions -- but only when traffic is stopped or moving slower than 25 miles per hour. And a new state law meant to protect minor children from appearing on the internet goes into effect tomorrow. Those stories and more in today’s evening update. Hosted by Emily Reese. Music by Gary Meister....
Jun 30, 2025•4 min
It was a weekend of severe weather for much of Minnesota. The National Weather Service says four tornadoes swept through Carver County alone. The the storms knocked down trees and power lines, but no storm-related injuries have been reported. Storms spawned a large twister on the Minnesota-South Dakota border. Heavy rains from the storms caused localized flooding as well. It was also a weekend of mourning in the Twin Cities with funeral services for Melissa and Mark Hortman. After a viewing at t...
Jun 30, 2025•5 min
Minnesotans get an opportunity to pay their final respects to former House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark Hortman Friday. The Hortmans, along with their golden retriever Gilbert, will lie in state at the Minnesota State Capitol in St. Paul Friday from noon to 5 p.m. State investigators say one of the Brooklyn Park police officers sent to check on Melissa Hortman the night of her slaying fired shots at the man suspected in the killings. A Michigan news outlet is reporting the deaths...
Jun 27, 2025•5 min
The wife of Vance Boelter — the man charged in the killing of State Rep. Melissa Hortman — has released her first public statement since the shootings. More rain is expected across central and southern Minnesota today, following storms that caused flash flooding yesterday. Those stories and more in today’s evening update. Hosted by Emily Reese. Music by Gary Meister....
Jun 26, 2025•4 min
The U.S. Justice Department is suing Minnesota over a state law that gives undocumented college students access to in-state tuition rates at public colleges and universities. A bipartisan resolution honoring Melissa and Mark Hortman was passed by the U.S. House Wednesday. It was introduced by Minnesota’s congressional delegation, alongside leaders from both parties. Community leaders in Minneapolis are speaking out against violence in the wake of the fatal shooting of an 11-year-old boy Monday i...
Jun 26, 2025•5 min
Jun 25, 2025•6 min
The late Minnesota House DFL Leader Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark will lie in state at the Capitol on Friday. And a Hennepin County judge today sentenced the woman who pleaded guilty to unintentional murder and assault for driving her automobile into a group last fall. Those stories and more in today’s evening update from MPR News. Hosted by Emily Reese. Music by Gary Meister....
Jun 24, 2025•4 min
A tentative truce between Israel and Iran is faltering. Israel is vowing to retaliate after saying Iran launched missiles into its airspace more than two hours after a ceasefire was supposed to take effect. And as that conflict, and the U.S. part in it, soaks up interest around the globe, Iranians in Minnesota are voicing their concerns. A year ago this week, many of us will remember the images of a house plunging into the raging Blue Earth River as it carved a path around the Rapidan Dam in sou...
Jun 24, 2025•5 min
Beltrami County and the city of Bemidji have declared a state of emergency due to severe storm damage over the weekend. The storms early Saturday had winds of more than 100 miles per hour. And another defendant in the Feeding Our Future case admitted that he tried to bribe one of the jurors at his trial last year. That story and more in today’s evening news update from MPR News. Hosted by Emily Reese. Music by Gary Meister....
Jun 23, 2025•4 min
Jun 23, 2025•5 min
Gov. Tim Walz says the Minnesota Legislature should consider prohibiting people from carrying firearms in the state Capitol. Current law says Minnesotans with a permit to carry are able to bring a gun inside the statehouse. Walz comments come after authorities charged a registered lobbyist who allegedly sent a text message threatening violence at the Minnesota Capitol. Also, heat advisories and warnings are in place for parts of southern and western Minnesota as a sweltering heat wave is expecte...
Jun 20, 2025•4 min
Jun 20, 2025•5 min
Extreme heat and humidity will roll into Minnesota this weekend. The sauna-like weather will be the first major heat wave of the summer. Temperatures will start to rise on Friday. The tropical air mass will push heat indexes to around 90 to 105 degrees. Also, more than 23,000 runners are registered for events connected to Grandma’s Marathon in Duluth, including a half and full marathon on Saturday. That number tops last year's record-breaking participation. This is the afternoon MPR News update,...
Jun 19, 2025•3 min
Tuition is going up at the University of Minnesota this fall. The Board of Regents yesterday approved a 6-and-a-half percent increase — the largest in a decade and a half. In-state tuition for undergrads on the Twin Cities campus will be just over 16-thousand dollars in the next academic year. That does not include additional fees — which are also going up. Brooklyn Park police are investigating a break-in at the home of DFL leader Melissa Hortman, and her husband Mark. The incident comes days a...
Jun 19, 2025•5 min
Brooklyn Park police are investigating a break-in at the home of DFL leader Melissa Hortman, and her husband Mark. The incident comes days after the Hortmans were shot and killed in their home in what authorities are calling a politically motivated attack. Police say they discovered pried-off plywood that was covering the home’s rear window, but nothing appeared to be missing. Also, state Rep. Kristin Bahner confirmed that her home was one of the targets of the man suspected of the shootings las...
Jun 18, 2025•4 min
A candlelight vigil to honor the late DFL House Leader Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark is planned for Wednesday night at Minnesota’s state Capitol. Organizers are asking attendees not to bring signs of any kind. The Hortmans were the target of a political assassination early Saturday morning at their home in Brooklyn Park. The Capitol building will be closed to the public during the vigil that begins at 8 p.m. Federal authorities have revealed that the man suspected in the shootings had an ...
Jun 18, 2025•4 min
Investigators are still trying to figure out what motivated a man to allegedly target Democratic elected officials in a series of shootings early Saturday morning. Meanwhile, candlelight vigil to honor top state House DFLer Melissa Hortman is planned for Wednesday night on the steps of the state Capitol. In other news, the Superior National Forest will charge people more to enter the Boundary Waters. This is the MPR News evening update, hosted by Emily Reese. Theme music by Gary Meister....
Jun 17, 2025•4 min
Vance Boelter has been charged in federal court with the targeted murder of state Rep. Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark, and the shooting of state Sen. John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette. Acting U.S. Attorney for Minnesota Joe Thompson was among a contingent of law enforcement officials who discussed the shootings Monday in a news conference. Thompson alleged Boelter researched his victims and surveilled their homes before the shootings. Boelter allegedly visited the homes of two other lawma...
Jun 17, 2025•5 min
State and federal prosecutors today outlined charges filed against the man suspected of killing Minnesota House DFL leader Melissa Hortman and her husband. That story and more in today’s evening update from MPR News. Hosted by Jacob Aloi. Music by Gary Meister.
Jun 16, 2025•4 min
A two-day manhunt for the suspect in the killings of a top DFL lawmaker and her spouse ended with his capture late last night. Vance Boelter faces murder charges in the deaths of former Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark. The 57-year-old Green Isle man also faces attempted murder charges in the wounding of state Sen. John Hoffman and his spouse, Yvette. Boelter allegedly had a list of politicians and others, including both of Minnesota’s U.S. senators. The shootings an...
Jun 16, 2025•5 min
Students interrupted a University of Minnesota Board of Regents meeting today — protesting a sale of university land to an aerospace company that works with the U.S. Department of Defense. And the homes of several members of the University of Minnesota Board of Regents were vandalized yesterday. Those stories and more in today’s evening update from MPR News. Hosted by Elena See. Music by Gary Meister....
Jun 13, 2025•6 min
Gov. Tim Walz testified before Congress Thursday about Minnesota’s cooperation with federal immigration authorities. Walz and two other democratic governors were questioned by a House committee about having what the Department of Homeland Security calls “sanctuary states.” Walz said Minnesota does not have any laws that make it a sanctuary state, and he says local law enforcement work with federal law enforcement. A Republican candidate for governor in Minnesota, Kendall Qualls is using the Walz...
Jun 13, 2025•5 min
Jun 12, 2025•6 min
An effort to open up a big swath of federal land near the Boundary Waters to copper-nickel mining has been stripped from the massive budget bill moving through Congress. Several dozen people protested outside the Sherburne County Jail in Elk River today in support of a St. Paul woman arrested for alleged actions during a raid in Minneapolis last week. Those stories and more in today’s evening update from MPR News. Hosted by Emily Bright. Music by Gary Meister....
Jun 11, 2025•6 min
A St. Paul woman is facing federal charges after allegedly assaulting a FBI agent during last week’s search of a Minneapolis restaurant. In a criminal complaint, prosecutors allege the woman was recorded on video trying to punch an FBI SWAT officer as others in the crowd tried to stop her. She then allegedly kicked the agent before breaking free of the crowd and pushing another FBI agent. The state’s response to protests following the murder of George Floyd five years ago was a point of contenti...
Jun 11, 2025•5 min
In a marathon one-day special session that ended early this morning, the Legislature passed 15 bills, most of them dealing with the budget. And two Minnesotans — Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Democratic Representative Betty McCollum — sparred during a congressional hearing today in Washington. Those stories and more in today’s evening update. Hosted by Emily Bright. Music by Gary Meister....
Jun 10, 2025•5 min
Jun 10, 2025•5 min
A special session has been underway today at the state Capitol to pass a budget. Of the 14 bills that are up for a vote, one bill that would remove adult immigrants without legal status from MinnesotaCare passed the House by a small margin. That story and more in today’s evening update from MPR News. Hosted by Jacob Aloi. Music by Gary Meister.
Jun 09, 2025•4 min
Jun 09, 2025•5 min
A special session has been called for the Minnesota Legislature - it will happen three weeks to the day after the regular session finished. And a jury has found Derrick Thompson guilty of all charges in the deaths of five women who were in a vehicle struck by the SUV Thompson was driving in 2023. Those stories and more in today’s evening update from MPR News. Hosted by Jacob Aloi. Music by Gary Meister....
Jun 06, 2025•4 min
