The man who killed a woman in a hit and run crash in Elko-New Market will go to trial. 33 year old Matthew Hartley of Eureka Township is accused of killing 23 year old Mollie Mahowald, a member of the Army National Guard, while she was standing on the shoulder of Main Street downtown. The crash happened on Sept. 25th last year at 2:30 in the morning. The criminal complaint states that Hartley was driving his motorcycle at a high rate of speed when he hit her, sending her 20 to 30 feet in the air. Witnesses told police that he appeared to be drunk, Hartley did not stop at the scene, instead he fled and asked a friend to help him hide his badly damaged bike. A tip led police to the motorcycle on
property at 25300 block of Cedar Avenue. At a settlement conference in Scott County, Hartley rejected the offer of up to 13 years in prison for 2 counts of criminal vehicular homicide, one by negligence, the other under the influence. His attorney contends that Mahowald was drunk and wandered into the road, making the crash her fault. Mahowald served two tours, in Afghanistan and Iraq as an Army mechanic. She had been attending college to become a Vet Tech. The trial in Scott County starts Monday.
Brewers hit a blip in as they chug toward opening
Tanzenwald Brewing Company and Imminent Brewing are on the brink of opening their locations in Northfield. But there’s been a blip. City Planner Scott Tempel told the Planning Commission last month, that the original zoning for them to be brewpubs. He said, “the thought was we’re mirroring the State Law and using the new language that came out and adopted that, the thought was we’d make it easy for brewpubs”. Tempel said what threw him was both companies want to distribute their beer in kegs outside of their buildings and he didn’t realize that’s not permitted under state law as a brew pub, “the state was not very happy that the zoning didn’t match what they’re license was. They’re applying as microbreweries with a taproom”. They held a public hearing for both entities and, rather than change the zoning, Tempel recommended giving them Conditional Use Permits to comply, “my formal apologies to both these applicants that this didn’t happen probably 6 months ago as it should but, like I said, this is new to the City, we’ve got new regulations and new businesses and we’re figuring it out”. The Planning Commission unanimously recommended approval for the CUP’s for Tanzenwald and Imminent, labeled microbreweries which also means they sell only what they make. This will now go before the City Council.
Rice County crime trending down
Crime in Rice County is trending downward. Rice County Sheriff Troy Dunn said especially the serious crimes. The Cannon River Drug and Violent Offender Task Force continues to, “really making a difference in battling these drug crimes”. He said methamphetamine continues to be the most serious drug right now followed by marijuana, marijuana wax and edibles. Prescription drugs and opioids follow. Dunn says they’ve found that those using and selling drugs are also often the perpetrators of other crimes such as burglaries, car break-ins and the like. He said, if they can hit the drug issue hard and get help for these people, find placement for them for treatment, the crime rate will continue to trend downward. The drug task force often finds weapons when they execute search warrants. Dunn added that with these busts, there’s also been an increase in Child Protection services to help the get the kids in a safe environment. Listen to his full interview on kymn.net.
NAUW not accepting applications for grants
The Northfield Area United Way has formed a search committee to fill the Executive director position after the exit of Elizabeth Child. Board Chair Helene Haapala said they’ve posted for the position and expect to fill it this Spring. She also announced that NAUW is now accepting proposals for human services grants in three critical areas: education, health and basic needs. Applications are available at northfieldunitedway.org . click below for the full press release and more information.
