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KIMBERLY POTTER RELEASED FROM PRISON
Direct your compassion here, too
This is a difficult letter to write. Kimberly Potter's attempt to detain Daunte Wright on an arrest warrant tragically caused his death, but appears to have been caused by mistake. It was a mistake that should not have happened, but I have not heard any evidence that Potter, as an officer in the Brooklyn Center Police Department, had any history of racial animus or similar behaviors.
However, the shooting was devastating for Kimberly Potter, too. She had served honorably in our police force for many years, and that was brought to a dishonorable end, which I believe she will forever regret and will have to live with.
I write now only to address the news media of her prison release, which is not acknowledging the great loss that she too has suffered and will continue to suffer ("Kim Potter released from prison before dawn as safety measure, 2 years after killing Daunte Wright," Star Tribune.com, April 24). Even understanding that she still has life and Daunte Wright does not, we should also understand that she deserves compassion for her grave mistake and the accompanying torment which will remain.
Thomas W. Wexler, Edina
The writer is a retired judge.
BRYANT AVENUE MAKEOVER
To remedy, or to celebrate?
Calling the reconstruction project on Bryant Avenue "bold and transformational" is wrong ("Mpls. admits Bryant Ave a mess," front page, April 24).
I have been on the corner of 43rd and Bryant for 68 years. It worked well for the businesses, for Barton school and for the neighborhood. It was safe for pedestrians and bicycles. There was no need to transform the street.
Now it is difficult for traffic, unsafe for school children and devastating for businesses. It is generally unused by bicycles, which prefer the middle of the street. The planning process ignored our warnings on these issues, and the City Council approved the plan. The businesses and homes on Bryant Avenue deserve a proper remedy.
Mark Keljik, Minneapolis
The writer is the owner of Keljik's Oriental Rugs.
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I live on Bryant Avenue S. and appreciate the comments people have written in about the recent reconstruction project. Foremost, I do not feel the city staff was arrogant. They patiently listened to people's input, and I believe it is reflected in the design of the street. If opponents to the completed portion of the street did not attend these listening sessions, it's unfair of them to attack the staff. If you did participate, thank you. I believe you experienced a thoughtful process.
Lessons have already been learned and these will likely be reflected in the remainder of the project. Additionally, the city will adjust its plowing protocols to address snow, etc.
Let's celebrate the current success. On a recent sunny day, countless bikers were using the bike lanes. This will continue, and it will be safer for bikers. On a recent heavy rain day, the rain gardens captured the runoff, redirecting flow ultimately from our lakes and streams that would have otherwise polluted these important community assets — a benefit for the entire community.
Many great communities have challenges. By participating and respecting each other we will meet our potential. Thank you to everyone for being engaged. Let's continue to improve and celebrate the good our city does, as well as continue to support our local businesses.
Mary Donovan, Minneapolis
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I have to believe that and if anyone complains, we'll just get rid of the parking was always Plan B for Bryant Ave.
Jack Kohler, Plymouth
MARIJUANA
Headline
Responding to "Get our money's worth out of legalization" (Readers Write, April 24):
I was in Seattle in March, and the way they get around the 37% tax is the retailers give you 30% off of your purchase price. The discounts sometimes are as high as 40%. So the high tax hurts the retailers.
The 8% tax proposed in Minnesota will also keep the black market from being profitable, as it is in California, and will keep prices competitive. Also, our state prices will compete very favorably with close-by neighbors.
High taxes will kill the industry.
Larry Peterson, Minnetonka
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In "Lessons learned from a decade of licensed pot in Colorado" (front page, April 23) research psychologist Prof. Angela Bryan repeats misinformation about pediatric cannabis poisoning. She states: "It's scary and it's uncomfortable for the kid. But that's something that's treatable and, certainly, no one's died from an overdose of cannabis."
Listed below are four cases of children dying from cannabis poisoning reported in PubMed and in mainstream media. It's noncontroversial to believe that legalizing adult-use cannabis would increase the odds of children ingesting cannabis edibles and concentrates left within reach by impaired adults. I suspect toddlers traumatized by a hospital stay, 15% of whom require ICU support, would not approve of legalizing recreational cannabis.
• An 11-day-old baby girl died due to acute marijuana toxicity. On autopsy extensive hemorrhage of the liver and adrenal glands was found due to maternal use of marijuana. (Bao C, Bao S. Am J Case Rep. 2019)
• An 11-month-old baby boy, following cannabis exposure, presented with central nervous system depression, progressed to cardiac arrest, and died. Cannabis exposure was confirmed post-mortem. (Nappe TM, Hoyte CO. Clin Pract Cases Emerg Med. 2017).
• A 4-year-old boy ate a large amount of THC gummies. He was placed on life support and died two days later. (CNN, Oct. 21, 2022)
• An FDA warning bulletin about delta-8 THC reported national poison control call data where one pediatric case was coded with a medical outcome of death. (FDA Consumer Update, May 4, 2022)
Dr. Maria Poirier, Rochester
The writer is an internal medicine physician.
MARY MORIARTY
It's what wasn't done
In response to "Hear her words more clearly" (Readers Write, April 23), it's what Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty is not saying that is even more important.
Moriarty did not make it clear that instead of allowing the court to decide whether the juveniles in the McKeever case should be certified, she made the decision to withdraw the motions and offer a plea deal without any consultation or communication with the victim's family. If she had not withdrawn these motions, the court, not Moriarty, would have made the determination as to whether public safety would be served by certification. This would have involved looking at the seriousness of the offense, the culpability of the child committing the offense, the child's prior record, the child's programming history, the adequacy of punishment or programming in the juvenile justice system and the dispositional options available to the child.
If the court had determined that adult certification was in the best interest of public safety, it does not automatically mean, as Moriarty stated, that a 10th-grader would be going to adult prison with people three times his size. Instead, if the courts decided to certify, they would have heard additional arguments and there certainly would have been another plea agreement put forward that could have allowed the juveniles to be sent to Red Wing until 21 or even extended until 25, at which time they could be evaluated as to the public safety risk and potentially then be either released on probation or sent to adult prison.
So what you hear from Moriarty are the words of a defense attorney defending her decision, which does not necessarily provide the public with all sides to the story. The governor and attorney general did get to hear all the sides, not just Moriarty's but also the words of the victim's family and all of the evidence, and they made the determination that the proposed plea was, as Attorney General Keith Ellison stated, is "disproportionate to the seriousness of the crime committed and falls far short of the family's and the community's expectations for justice and safety."
Julie Wicklund, Minneapolis
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2023-04-24 22:31:30Z
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