Free Republic

FERGUS FALLS, Minn. - A Fergus Falls man who called himself a "soul collector" has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for attacking his neighbor. Forty-three-year-old Timothy Eugene Peterson was accused of trying to cut off his neighbor's toes and scalp him last January, in order to "collect his soul." The attack left Ivan "Skip" Mallas with multiple stab wounds. Peterson pleaded guilty to assault in July. Other counts were dismissed. KSAX-TV reports Peterson was given credit for 297 days for time served. He was also ordered to pay $731 in restitution and court fees.

Shortages have more than tripled since 2005, according to the University of Utah's Drug Information Service, and by the end of the year more than 300 products are likely to be back-ordered, in short supply or totally unavailable. Some are anesthetics and pain therapies, others emergency room "crash cart" drugs. But most—about 70% in 2010—belong to the class of drugs known as "sterile injectables" that are mainstays of the chemotherapy arsenal, such as paclitaxel or cytarabine.

Under one proposal the Assembly passed Tuesday, homeowners acting in self-defense would be immune from criminal or civil liability of they kill someone who is unlawfully in their residence, vehicle or workplace. The bill requires a court to presume that the use of deadly force was necessary to prevent harm to the person being attacked or another person when the attack happens at the defender's home. "The citizens of this state, they just want to feel secure in their homes," said the bill's sponsor Rep. Dean Kaufert, R-Neenah. "They just want the ability to protect themselves without the fear of...

You knew it was coming. Max Slesarev, 29, a UW-Madison employee, showed up at Madison's Freakfest Saturday dressed as "LRB-1383." That's the formal name of the budget repair bill, the mix of measures that balanced the state budget but drew tens of thousands of protesters to the Capitol earlier this year. Public workers such as Slesarev took pension and health insurance hits. Friends swirled around him Saturday with a giant plastic cleaver, encouraging passersby to "kill the bill." The annual Halloween party on State Street always boasts a political bent - it's Madison, after all - and this year was...

The same study used to justify $270,000 in retroactive raises to Minneapolis Public Schools administrators could be used by the district to cut the compensation of its unionized staff. District leaders say the report, which found that hundreds of employees are paid above-market rates, will be used in contract talks as the district seeks pay and benefit freezes and other concessions from union-represented staffers. The study, compiled by Public Sector Personnel Consultants, found that 30 percent of union-represented employees, excluding teachers, are paid above a maximum proposed salary plan, costing the district more than $6 million per year. "Unions just...

Christopher Neil Bjerkness faces sentencing Nov. 29 in a felony burglary case after a plea agreement was reached Wednesday in St. Louis County District Court. Known as the "Ball Slasher," the 33-year-old Bjerkness originally pleaded not guilty to breaking into the Chester Creek Academy fitness center in May. Bjerkness has several previous convictions for breaking into facilities to slash exercise balls - an action described as a sexual fetish.

Social Security advocates are planning to protest Thursday at Social Security offices around the county. Thousands of American Federation of Government Employees Social Security employees, along with the Alliance for Retired Americans, the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare, and the Strengthen Social Security Campaign are protesting recent proposals from Congress that would cut the Social Security Administration's operational budget.

WASHINGTON - The richest 1 percent of Americans have been getting far richer over the last three decades while the middle class and poor have seen their after-tax household income only crawl up in comparison, according to a government study. After-tax income for the top 1 percent of U.S. households almost tripled, up 275 percent, from 1979 to 2007, the Congressional Budget Office found. For people in the middle of the economic scale, after-tax income grew by just 40 percent. Those at the bottom experienced an 18 percent increase. "The distribution of after-tax income in the United States was substantially...

anyone got a list of all Barry's Executive Orders ? when did that become the "new normal"? who holds the record for the most issued?

19-year-old St. Paul man who was set on fire by his mother's boyfriend has accused his uncle and mother of stealing thousands of dollars from a benefit for him, authorities say. Jeffrey Allen Stewart, 43, and Jodi Ann Stewart, 40, of South St. Paul, each face a felony of aiding and abetting theft by swindle in the theft, according to a Dakota County criminal complaint filed today. The brother and sister allegedly stole $2,500 from Antonie Willis. The money was taken from banks in South St. Paul and Woodbury, the charges said. Willis was burned by his mother's boyfriend, Curtis...

President Obama’s message to spur the economy has changed from “pass this bill” to “we can’t wait.” And mortgage rates are the impatient administration’s first target. Rather than waiting for congressional action to improve the outlook for homeowners, the White House is making it easier to refinance loans backed by the Home Affordable Refinance Program. Though the executive branch can’t legally reach into the practices of private lenders, here is a look at a list of changes (and nudges) the administration plans to implement beginning on Nov. 15:

Evanovich's sisters say they know what their brother was doing was wrong, but they say the police should have handled the response because they’re trained to deal with crimes in progress. Johnita Beal says the witness should have dialed 911, "Police could have been easily contacted, easily, and my brother would have been behind bars, or something like that, but no, he's gone now."

The arrest of Chris Cook put the Vikings at 36 arrests since 2000, one more than the Cincinnati Bengals, according to information compiled by SignOnSanDiego.com and thedeets.com. Six Vikings have been arrested in the past nine months. It's a good thing Vikings owner Zygi Wilf instituted that Code of Conduct after the Love Boat incident or it could be even worse, right?

Police called him a "Good Samaritan," but Minneapolis detectives were still investigating Friday the case of a man who shot and killed an armed robber he chased down the night before. The man who fired the fatal shot had a permit for his handgun and told police he used the weapon after the fleeing robber turned and confronted him behind a restaurant. Police spokesman Sgt. William Palmer said the department was leaning toward classifying the shooting as self-defense. "However, decisions on charging are left up to the county attorney's office. And since there's a death, it might even be taken...

A Duluth man continued to say someone else shot him, but nevertheless pleaded for a shorter sentence Thursday by telling the court: "If I shot myself, your honor, I don't need any prison; I need a damn shrink." Judge David Johnson was unmoved and sentenced Alcide Cloutier, 35, to a longer-than-guideline prison sentence of 7-1/2 years. Last month, a St. Louis County jury rejected Cloutier's claim that he was a good Samaritan who was shot by a black man - whom he later described as a white man - while trying to help a woman in Duluth's Lakeside neighborhood in...

MINNEAPOLIS — Minneapolis police say a man who witnessed an elderly woman being robbed and pistol-whipped shot and killed her attacker. Authorities say the armed robber confronted the woman in the parking lot of a grocery store about 10 p.m. Thursday, took her purse and hit her in the head with his gun. A man who witnessed the robbery chased the suspect and shot him. When police arrived, the witness told officers he had a permit to carry a gun and that he had shot the armed robbery suspect during a confrontation outside a nearby restaurant. He told officers where...

UND officials have estimated the cost of retiring the Fighting Sioux nickname and logo at nearly $750,000, not counting the cost of changes that may occur at the privately-held Ralph Engelstad Arena. University President Robert Kelley sent the estimates last week to a budget analyst and auditor with the North Dakota Legislative Council, in response to a request made by Rep. Mike Schatz, R-New England. Schatz, who has declared that he will not support an attempt in next month's special legislative session to clear the way for retirement of the name and logo, said he asked for the cost information...

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie's decision to stay out of the Republican presidential race means that the American people will be spared months of discussion about his ample waistline and the bad example it sets. Nonetheless, with first lady Michelle Obama urging everyone to get moving, obesity remains a political hot potato, or maybe a tater tot. Below, a helping of skepticism about the causes of Americans' poor eating habits - and the efficacy of political fixes. 5 myths of healthy eating...

Anti-Wall Street protests are growing in number across the country and around the globe, but their political impact remains unclear and will likely depend upon their staying power. At a minimum, the protests have become a channel for public anger over rising economic inequality and Washington's ineffectiveness. "They are a pretty good thermometer for the level of discontent in the country," said John Green, director of the Ray C. Bliss Institute of Applied Politics at the University of Akron. "But the connection between Republicans and Wall Street and the banks will surely be an election issue next year." Romney used...

Three Americans who were imprisoned in Iran and accused of spying voiced their support Monday for activists with the Occupy Wall Street movement and California prisoners protesting solitary confinement conditions. Minnesota native Shane Bauer, Josh Fattal and Sarah Shourd each spoke at the "Occupy Oakland" encampment in front of City Hall where dozens of activists have been sleeping in tents for the past week. The three University of California-Berkeley graduates thanked supporters who advocated for their release and said they are inspired by the Wall Street protests. "This is the perfect place to celebrate our freedom," said Bauer, a freelance...