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With new law, police in Minnesota increasingly flying drones without a search warrant
Four years ago, legislators and civil liberties advocates in Minnesota hailed a new state law that for the first time regulated the emerging use of drones by law enforcement agencies. But the legislation, in a move that left some officials uneasy, also did something else: It allowed law enforcement to use drones without a search warrant in nine specific instances ... Continue Reading
Pursuing a police report in Wayzata
For most of the past year, Wayzata police and the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office have instead provided varying legal reasons for why the data in a case related to students at Providence Academy is not considered public. ... Continue Reading
For Hennepin County’s new sheriff: A quick pivot to encryption
The move was noteworthy because Hennepin County Sheriff Dave Hutchinson, during his campaign for sheriff in 2018, had opposed encrypting police radio traffic – and there were no indications the new sheriff had changed his mind. ... Continue Reading
Tracking A Data Request Regarding The Dakota Access Pipeline
Instead of producing documents that might have provided insight into Hennepin County’s decision-making process, the sheriff’s office let more than a year lapse before turning over data. ... Continue Reading
Looking back at the ten year effort to end homelessness in Hennepin County
Documents show that public and private sector officials were often overwhelmed by the enormity of the problem, and wrestled with data that at times left them without an accurate way to count the number of homeless. The city and county’s multi-layered bureaucracies added to the complexities. ... Continue Reading
Records reveal costs, logistics of Dakota Access Pipeline deployment
New documents show that an estimated $431,000 was spent to send deputies from Hennepin, Washington, and Anoka counties to respond to protests at the Dakota Access Pipeline project in North Dakota in the fall of 2016. ... Continue Reading