A Faribault woman is dead after being struck by a Rice County Sherriff’s Office squad car in Morristown over the weekend. 
According to a statement issued by the Rice County Sherriff’s Department, 52-year-old Stephanie Marie Wesley of Faribault was struck by a squad car driven by Sergeant Trevor Peterson at approximately 2am on Saturday morning as she was walking on the 8,000 block of Morristown Boulevard.
The statement said Peterson was not responding to an emergency call at the time of the incident. Deputies at the scene attempted lifesaving efforts, as well as EMT’s with Morristown Rescue and North Ambulance who all responded to the call. However, they were unable to revive Wesley. She was pronounced dead at the scene.
The Minnesota State Patrol is handling the investigation. As this is an ongoing investigation, no further information has been released. The Sheriff’s Department did say Sgt. Peterson is on “scheduled days off.” The public is being asked to direct all inquiries to the Minnesota State Patrol.
The statement said Sheriff Thomas’ thoughts and prayers, as well as everyone else’s within his department, are with Wesley’s family at this time.
***UPDATE: The Rice County Sheriff’s Office has released 16 seconds of footage from Sgt. Peterson’s squad car camera, showing what appears to be Wesley lying on the road just before being struck. An updated statement said Peterson was traveling at 59 mph, one mile below the posted speed limit.
City of Northfield distributes over 10,000 KN95 masks
The City of Northfield announced on Friday afternoon that the supply of KN95 masks they acquired for the public has been completely distributed.
The city started offering masks on Thursday, and by Friday afternoon, more than 10,000 had been given away. Up to five free KN95 masks per person were available at the Northfield Public Library, and the Northfield Police Department. Additionally, local businesses could have picked up masks to provide for their customers and patrons at the Northfield Chamber of Commerce.
Wearing a high-quality mask helps to limit the spread of COVID-19, including the Omicron variant. The Centers for Disease Control and the Minnesota Department of Health are both recommending the use of KN95 masks.
Two weeks ago, President Biden announced that the federal government would distribute 400 million KN95 masks in the coming weeks. The 10,000 masks Northfield was able obtain and distribute were in addition to the President’s plans. Northfield Chief of Police Mark Elliott said the city is watching very closely for announcements from the federal government regarding both masks and testing supplies.
“We will continue to monitor the federal and state government initiatives that have been announced,” he said, “and will help to facilitate those initiatives in any way that we can.”
In addition to wearing a mask in all public indoor settings, the CDC and MDH are recommending that all who are eligible should get vaccinated against the virus as well.
Lippert lays out legislative agenda
The 2022 State Legislative Session begins today. Legislators will have the responsibility of deciding what to do with a $7.7 billion dollar
budget surplus this year. As always, even with a record amount to reconcile, there will be more ideas for using the money than there will be dollars themselves
Representative Todd Lippert has said he sees two immediate priorities for the surplus, beginning with childcare. He said one of the major reasons the country is wrestling with such a severe workforce shortage is because parents cannot find, nor can they afford, quality childcare. Lippert said the state of Minnesota has one of the lowest reimbursement rates in the country, and we need to do more to help the people who require childcare in order to make a living.
Another area Lippert said requires immediate help is in long term care providers. Again, Lippert said, a higher state reimbursement rate would help organizations like the Northfield Retirement Community, Three Links and Laura Baker Services Association attract and retain workers.
He said part of the money should be used to respond to climate change, and he thinks planting trees would be a good way to do that. And not just a few trees.
“I’d like to plant millions of trees,” he said. “Millions more to not just respond to climate change, but also to the Emerald Ash Borer crisis.”
Finally, Lippert said, another big priority he would like to see accomplished in this session is the establishment of a clean fuel standard for the state of Minnesota. Lippert said this is something Governor Walz is considering, and he thinks it’s a good idea for several reasons.
“It’s the biggest transportation lever we can pull in this state to help reduce carbon emissions. It would also benefit Farmers in Minnesota, too, in helping develop some advanced biofuels as we go. So, it would be something that would farmers to be more profitable, and have more options, and benefit our water and our soil too.”
This will be Lippert’s final session with the legislature. He announced at the beginning of the month that he will not seek re-election this fall.
Jeff Johnson’s full conversation with Representative Todd Lippert can be heard here.
Rich Larson is the KYMN News Director. Contact him at rich@kymnradio.net
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