3/7/2025 -- Crime Down In Minneapolis

🏒💇‍♂️ The Minnesota Boys State Hockey Tournament is underway and there are already some early leaders for the all-hair team.

Politics

Minnesota House Fails to Pass Bill Restricting Transgender Girls from Girls' Sports

The Summary: A Republican-led bill seeking to prohibit transgender girls from participating in girls' elementary and secondary school sports teams in Minnesota did not pass in the state House after a heated debate.

Bill Details and Debate: The "Preserving Girls' Sports Act," introduced by Rep. Peggy Scott, sparked over two hours of debate primarily along party lines. Republicans argued the bill was about fairness and maintaining Title IX protections, while Democrats criticized it as discriminatory and harmful to transgender children. Rep. Leigh Finke, the state's first transgender legislator, called the bill "pure erasure."

Rallies and Protests: The bill prompted protests and counter-protests at the Capitol. A rally featured Riley Gaines, a former NCAA All-American swimmer and advocate for banning transgender athletes from women's sports, who argued that allowing transgender girls to compete in girls' sports puts all Minnesotans at risk.

Political Landscape and Future: Despite Republicans holding a majority in the House, the bill failed to garner the necessary votes. Even if it had passed the House, it would have faced challenges in the DFL-controlled Senate and from DFL Governor Tim Walz.

Impact and Data: The Minnesota State High School League does not require schools to report transgender athletes, citing state data privacy laws. While at least two dozen states have barred transgender girls from girls' and women’s sports, a Pew Research Center survey found that a majority of U.S. adults favor policies requiring athletes to compete on teams matching their sex assigned at birth.

Safety

Minneapolis Reports Decline in Violent Crime Rates for Early 2025

The Summary: Minneapolis has reported a reduction in violent crime in early 2025 compared to the same period in 2024. The city has seen notable improvements across several categories of criminal activity, including a 47% decrease in robberies, a 40% reduction in carjackings, and 32% fewer shooting victims.

Police Department Progress: Police Chief Brian O'Hara attributes this positive change to improvements within the police department. For the first time since 2019, MPD hired more officers than it lost in 2024, resulting in a net gain of 38 sworn positions by the end of the year.

Cautious Optimism: While the crime reduction is encouraging, Chief O'Hara remains cautiously optimistic. Violent crime rates are still higher than in 2019, but the city recently experienced its first week without a shooting since early 2019. A significant drop in juvenile violence is credited to the "Curfew Task Force" implemented last summer. This initiative has helped develop trust with parents of at-risk youth.

What Else We’re Reading…

Presidential Run For Walz?

Governor Tim Walz has expressed openness to a potential presidential run in 2028, stating he would "certainly consider" it if he believes he can offer something valuable and if the circumstances are right. Walz made the statement on a recent New Yorker podcast.

Sports 🏒

🏒 The Minnesota Boys State Hockey Tournament is underway. Check out the updated results and brackets.

🏀 The Gopher Men’s Basketball Team lost to our border rival, Wisconsin Badgers. They close out their season on the road against Rutgers on Sunday.

🏀 The Gopher Women’s Basketball Team were eliminated from the Big 10 Tournament in the first round against Washington. In ESPN’s bracketology, the Gophers are slated to be the last team in the tournament.

🏒 The Minnesota Frost lost their second straight game with the most recent one coming at the hands of Montreal. They have dropped to fourth in the PWHL standings.

🏀 The Minnesota Timberwolves are winners of three straight games and have been helped by the return of Julius Randle and Donte Divincenzo.

🏒 The Minnesota Wild defeated the Seattle Kraken by a score of 4-3.

Quick hits

Headlines From Around The Twin Cities and Greater Minnesota ✔

❯ Third graders in one Minnesota classroom successfully lobbied Tim Walz to create a new holiday (Kare11)

❯ A movement is growing online to encourage President Trump to pardon Derek Chauvin (CNN)

❯ ICE made seven arrests at a St. Louis Park manufacturing facility this past week (Sahan Journal)

❯ A new study shows that Minnesota is less Lutheran than it used to be (MN Reformer)

The Final Word: Enjoying the snow ❄

I may not have been the biggest fan of the snowstorm that ripped through the Twin Cities this past week but my dog could not have been happier.

-Patrick