By MICHAEL KUNZELMAN

WASHINGTON (AP) — A New Jersey man pleaded guilty Thursday to charges that he brought dozens of homemade explosive devices to a Washington, D.C., church that was preparing for an annual Mass celebrating the start of the Supreme Court’s term, court records show.

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Louis Geri of Vineland is scheduled to be sentenced on July 27 by U.S. District Judge Randolph Moss. Geri remains jailed until sentencing after pleading guilty to two felony counts: illegal possession of a destructive device and extortion by wrongful use of force, violence or fear.

Geri and the government agreed that a prison term ranging from five years and 10 months to seven years and three months would be appropriate. Moss isn’t bound by that recommendation, but Geri could withdraw his guilty plea if the judge imposes a longer sentence.

Geri was arrested Oct. 5 outside St. Matthew’s Cathedral, where police officers were clearing the area before the annual Red Mass. Some justices usually attend the celebration, but none went to last year’s ceremony.

On the eve of the Red Mass, Geri set up a tent on steps leading into the church and spent the night inside it. He had more than 100 explosive devices inside the tent along with a nine-page “list of written demands,” according to a court filing accompanying his guilty plea.

“The defendant intended to use the threat of death or significant property damage from these explosive devices to coerce negotiations regarding his demands from the Federal Government, St. Matthew’s Church, the Supreme Court of the United States, and other groups and entities,” the filing says.

Geri told police that he had explosive devices and said “several of your people are gonna die from one of these” if his demands weren’t met, according to the filing. His written demands included requests for money, for an “expatriation flight” to Japan and for the Supreme Court to remove the state of Arizona from the U.S., the filing adds.

Police said they found paperwork in Geri’s possession that expressed “significant animosity” toward the Roman Catholic church, Jewish people, the Supreme Court and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Geri initially was charged in D.C. Superior Court, but he pleaded guilty in federal court.

An attorney for Geri didn’t immediately respond to an email seeking comment.

In Minnesota, the first 50-degree day isn’t weather.

It’s a declaration.

After months of windchills that feel personally insulting, the moment the thermometer blinks 5-0, the entire state stages a controlled emotional release. Fifty degrees hits and suddenly we’re a Mediterranean culture — if the Mediterranean had snowbanks taller than a third grader.

Every Minnesotan steps into the driveway, squints at the sun and says, “Welcome back, old friend,” as if the sun had just returned from a long sabbatical.

Shorts emerge from drawers like they’ve been waiting for parole. Legs so pale they could signal passing aircraft step boldly into the neighborhood. No transition period. Just knees. Everywhere.

Patios fill instantly. Restaurants and breweries throw open their doors like it’s the last helicopter out of winter. Are people still wearing gloves? Possibly. Is someone in a hoodie and knit cap? Absolutely. It doesn’t matter. You are outside, clutching a frosty mug of hope. This is not about comfort. This is principle.

Golf courses reopen in conditions best described as damp optimism. Fairways squish. Greens wobble. It does not matter. We are golfing because we have decided it is golf season.

Snowbanks shrink into gray, mysterious shapes, revealing lost mittens, rogue hockey pucks and items we quietly agree were never ours. Sunglasses reappear. Lawn chairs materialize in driveways. Someone grills in a sweatshirt like it’s an act of defiance.

And then, like a migratory bird with a soft-serve machine, Dairy Queen opens its window.

The line wraps around the building. The wind still has teeth. A child is visibly shivering while holding a Blizzard. No one questions this. We have waited too long.

Of course, we know better.

We know 50 degrees does not mean winter is finished. There is still a windchill hiding in the forecast. There is at least one heavy, wet snowstorm lurking — probably behind an innocent-looking state high school tournament, waiting for a full parking ramp and a statewide audience before making its entrance.

We’ve seen this before.

The tarp gets pulled off the lawnmower — the one tucked carefully into the corner of the garage last fall for a long winter’s nap. It blinks in the sunlight. We consider it. The lawn considers us.

“Not yet,” it says.

So we wait.

But for one afternoon — one glorious, slightly premature afternoon — we allow ourselves to believe.

Fifty degrees in Minnesota isn’t warm.

It’s permission.

Mark Glende, Rosemount, is an elementary school custodian. “I write about real-life stories with a slight twist of humor,” he says. “I’m not smart enough to make this stuff up.”

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Gov. Tim Walz on Thursday ordered all U.S. and Minnesota flags to fly at half-staff at all state buildings until sunset on the day of interment, in honor of Nicole Amor of White Bear Lake. Amor died on March 1, in Port Shuaiba, Kuwait.

Sgt. 1st Class Nicole Amor, 39, of White Bear Lake. (Courtesy of the U.S. Army Reserve)

“Sergeant First Class Amor answered the call to serve and gave her life in service to our nation. She wore our nation’s uniform with courage and selflessness, demonstrating dedication and honor throughout her life and career,” Walz said in a statement. “Her life was marked by service to others, and her memory will be treasured by all who were fortunate to know her. With deep gratitude, Minnesota recognizes Sergeant First Class Amor’s unwavering dedication and bravery, and I extend my deepest condolences to her loved ones.”

Amor was assigned to the 103rd Sustainment Command (Expeditionary) and served in support of U.S. military operations at the time of her death. Amor was one of six U.S. service members who died in the incident, which remains under investigation by the Pentagon.

She enlisted in the Minnesota National Guard in 2005 before transferring to the Army Reserve in 2006. Previously she had deployed to Kuwait and Iraq in 2019 and “served for more than 20 years with commitment and distinction in logistics operations supporting fellow service members,” according to the governor’s statement.

Walz asked businesses and other organizations to join in lowering flags as a way to honor Amor. The governor’s proclamation on the matter can be found at tinyurl.com/y88anydr.

 

 

In a case that began with a St. Paul police investigation, a man pleaded guilty this week to conspiracy to distribute almost 900 pounds of methamphetamine, the U.S. Attorney for Minnesota announced Thursday.

One of the St. Paul police investigators was a member of the Ramsey County Sheriff’s Office Violent Crime Enforcement Team and another was a U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration task force officer. The investigators had information that some of the drugs were going to be delivered to a St. Paul address. They found the main suspect’s vehicle in Minneapolis and were able to keep working the case.

Guillermo Mercado-Chaparro, 45, was listed as having a Chicago address when he was charged. He is a Mexican citizen who was removed from the U.S. in 2001 and 2004, and was undocumented when he was arrested in July, according to a plea agreement filed in federal court Wednesday.

Mercado-Chaparro sold a pound of methamphetamine to an undercover police officer, according to court documents. Police followed Mercado-Chaparro and watched him conduct other drug deals. Soon after, police saw him retrieve two large garbage bags from his pickup truck and put them in a nearby Jeep.

Guillermo Mercado-Chaparro (Courtesy of the Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office)

A police search of the Jeep turned up about 250 pounds of meth in the garbage bags and a cooler. With a search warrant for Mercado-Chapparo’s truck, law enforcement found another 630 pounds of meth in the truck’s bed.

Mercado-Chaparro has agreed to be deported after he serves his sentence in the case, the plea agreement said.

Another man charged in the case initially pleaded not guilty, and is scheduled for a change of plea hearing later this month.

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