Friends and neighbors,
By now you have probably heard about the troubling situation involing Democrat Senator Nicole Mitchell of Woodbury, who was recently arrested and charged with first-degree burglary.
If you haven’t followed the story, here is what happened: In the early hours of April 22, police responded to a break-in at a residence in Detroit Lakes, where Senator Mitchell was apprehended in the act of unlawfully entering her stepmother’s home. According to the criminal complaint, she admitted to officers on the scene that she “did something bad.”
Senator Mitchell’s statements over the past couple of days conflict with the criminal complaint and with statements by the stepmother:
- Senator Mitchell claimed she was trying to retrieve her father’s belongings, including his ashes. Senator Mitchell’s stepmother says most of the ashes were buried, but that she sent a small container with the ashes to Senator Mitchell already.
- Two laptops were found in Senator Mitchell’s backpack. One of them had a a login screen belonging to her stepmother. Senator Mitchell claims the laptops were given to her. The Stepmother denies this.
- Senator Mitchell later wrote on Facebook that she was performing a well-being check on her Stepmother, who Senator Mitchell says suffers from Alzehimer’s. A 911 transcript reports the Stepmother tripped over Senator Mitchell, who was laying on the ground next to the bed. Senator Mitchell then fled to the basement, where police found her hiding. She was dressed in black, with a black hat, and a black sock over a flashlight.
- Senator Mitchell claimed to have a key to the home, but she entered through a small basement door.
You can read the criminal complaint yourself here.
This serious felony charge compels us to uphold the highest standards of ethical conduct expected of all Senate members. So far, Senate Democrats have refused to acknowledge the severity of Senator Mitchell’s conduct, ask for her resignation, or remove her from committee positions.
Therefore, Senate Republicans have taken a couple of steps to defend the integrity of Senate and seek answers for the public.
First, we have filed an ethics complaint against Senator Mitchell, outlining a number of rules violations.
Second, we made a motion during Wednesday’s floor session to immediately launch an investigation into Senator Mitchell’s conduct based on the ethics complaint. Democrats voted down our efforts to begin this investigation.
While Senator Mitchell has every right to due process and remains innocent until proven guilty, it is our duty as elected officials to respond decisively when public trust is compromised. Senators are held to a higher ethical standard. We must urgently address any actions that might harm the integrity of the Senate.
If you have any questions about this situation, please let me know. I will provide updates as we learn more.
Sincerely,