“Self defense” for Nfld woman involved in fatal shooting
The woman who fatally shot 61 year old Lily Kirckof last August was not charged. Rice County Attorney John Fossum explained that they wouldn’t be able to prove without a reasonable doubt that the woman who shot Kirckof wasn’t acting in self defense. 75 year old Phyllis Hall owned the home on Jefferson Rd in Northfield. Kirckof had a room in the basement. They shared the first floor while Hall’s bedroom was upstairs. They didn’t go into each other’s space, but on that morning, Fossum said, “Lily came upstairs shouting and threatening and making a lot of noise and was standing in the doorway
bedroom on the 2nd floor of the house where she wasn’t normally .. wasn’t supposed to be. There were people outside the house who heard yelling, roaring and things breaking”. Kirckof was a large person. Hall told police that Lily threatened to kill her. Fossum said if you have a large person standing in the doorway and you’re a frail person with limited mobility and on the 2nd floor, it’s hard to argue that there’s anyplace for you to go. Based on all the evidence gathered by the Northfield Police Department and the BCA, the conclusion was self-defense.
Raabolle named NAFRS Firefighter of the Year
NAFRS held their annual banquet on Saturday. Fire Chief Gerry Franek said it’s an opportunity to recognize the volunteers and their spouses. Their program included a word from Rice County Sheriff Troy Dunn, Board Chair Glen Castore and 
Franek shared a rundown of what happened last year, their accomplishments and what their goals are for next year. This years Firefighter of the Year is Justin Raabolle. Franek said, “with young people like this coming up the ranks, it gives me a lot of optimism in our future for our fire department. The next generation, I think, will be in good hands with people like this”. For Raabolle, the honor, caught him off-guard. He said, “I would say it, kind of, meant the world to me. I was completely blown away that someone would recognize, it’s nice to have the light shine back on me”. He could also name several others he thought deserved the honor too. He’s a father of three with another one coming in May. I asked him how he had time. He said lots of nights and weekends including 2 o’clock this morning, they had a carbon monoxide alarm. He shared, “there was a piece of equipment in the garage that they had to isolate” They vented the garage and the home. He said they told the owners how to do what they were doing in the garage differently. It was “not a big deal”, he said, but also noted the homeowners had a Co2 alarm. Raabolle is starting his 4th year on the department.
MLK celebration highlights healing and Father Denny is awarded
This year’s Northfield Human Rights Commission celebration of Martin Luther King Jr. Day is centered around healing. HRC member Larry Fowler invites the public to comment at an open mic and share stories of how their lives were impacted by King. They’ll give their annual Human Rights award this evening. This year’s recipient is Father Denny Dempsey of St. Dominic’s Catholic Church. Chair Richard DeBeau said he’s been so impressed by the work of St.Dominic’s in supporting the Latino community and supporting human rights. He’s thrilled Father Denny will receive the award. The event will be held at Emmaus Baptist Church tonight at 7o’clock.
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