DETROIT LAKES, Minn. — The felony burglary trial of a Minnesota state senator that was scheduled to start with jury selection on Monday in Becker County District Court will not proceed as originally planned.
Jury selection in the trial for Sen. Nicole Mitchell, DFL-Woodbury, was to begin at 8:30 a.m. Monday.
On Sunday, court officials issued a notice stating that instead of the start of jury selection, a hearing will be held at 9 a.m. Monday via Zoom.
A court official said it’s due to the weekend events in the Twin Cities, where two lawmakers were shot early Saturday morning.
Rep. Melissa Hortman and her husband were killed inside their Brooklyn Park home. Sen. John Hoffman and his wife were shot earlier in their Champlin home. They survived.
Police have said the Democratic lawmakers were targeted, and the shooter was impersonating a police officer. The suspect, 57-year-old Vance Luther Boelter, was arrested Sunday night near his home in rural Sibley County.
Mitchell’s lawyer said he could not comment about the continuance.
Mitchell is accused of burglarizing her stepmother’s house in Detroit Lakes in April 2024.
Mitchell told police officers she was retrieving items of a sentimental nature that belonged to her late father, included his cremated remains, court documents say.
Mitchell faces two felony burglary counts: first-degree burglary and possession of burglary or theft tools. She pleaded not guilty to the burglary charge.
Charges were brought against Mitchell during the 2024 legislative session.
Authorities said that around 4:45 a.m. on April 22, 2024, Detroit Lakes police were dispatched to the home of Mitchell’s stepmother for a report of a break-in.
Officers found Mitchell in a basement bathroom, dressed in black clothing, according to the complaint.
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