Latest news with #NorthDakota
Yahoo
12 hours ago
- Yahoo
Jamestown man involved in standoff facing multiple felony charges
Jun. 19—JAMESTOWN — A 30-year-old man who was involved in an hours-long standoff on Wednesday, June 18, at Western Park Village is facing felony charges in Southeast District Court in Jamestown. Jacob Lee Schmitt, Jamestown, is facing charges of terrorizing, prohibited/possess firearm, preventing arrest or discharge of other duties, child neglect, prohibited acts A/controlled substances and possession of drug paraphernalia, Class C felonies, ingesting a controlled substance, a Class A misdemeanor, and disorderly conduct, a Class B misdemeanor. Bail was set at either $10,000 cash or a $25,000 surety bond. Schmitt was in custody in the Stutsman County Correctional Center as of 5 p.m. Thursday, June 19. Schmitt is accused of threatening to harm an individual by burning her on a cross, possessing and/or controlling a firearm after being convicted of a felony in the last five years, creating a substantial risk of bodily injury to a public servant or to anyone except himself or employing means justifying or requiring substantial force to overcome resistance to affecting an arrest or discharge of duty, child neglect, possessing methamphetamine and items used with methamphetamine with previous convictions in 2016, 2017, 2018, 2020 and 2021 and ingesting methamphetamine on June 18 and hitting a child in the face with his elbow on June 17. The Jamestown Police Department responded to a report of a female resident who was not feeling safe in her home at 1818 Western Park Village at about 2 a.m. Wednesday, June 18. Court documents say Schmitt came to the residence a "couple days" before Wednesday to see his child and refused to leave. The woman said Schmitt was using narcotics "very heavily" and he had not slept for four days. Schmitt told a Jamestown police officer that he would "burn" the woman on a cross and called her a "witch," court documents say. Jamestown police officers tried to make contact with Schmitt but he refused to speak with law enforcement and retreated further inside the residence, barricading himself in a back room, said Maj. Justin Blinsky, assistant chief of police for the city of Jamestown. Four occupants were evacuated from the home but Schmitt took a 2-year-old child with him to the back room, Blinsky said. The woman told a Jamestown police officer that the back room had three to four firearms that Schmitt had access to, court documents say. The James Valley Special Operations Team was activated at 2:50 a.m. Wednesday to help minimize safety risks, Blinsky said. The Jamestown Police Department asked residents of Western Park Village to shelter in place, which was lifted after Schmitt was arrested. Blinksky said police were able to communicate with Schmitt while he was inside the residence, but he refused to comply with police requests to come outside or to assist the child in leaving the residence. At about 12:45 p.m. Wednesday, the James Valley Special Operations Team entered the home, removed the child and took Schmitt into custody. A Class C felony is punishable by five years in prison and a $10,000 fine. A Class A misdemeanor is punishable by 360 days in prison and a $3,000 fine. A Class B misdemeanor is punishable by 30 days in prison and a $1,500 fine.
CBS News
a day ago
- Politics
- CBS News
Man cites Minnesota lawmaker shootings in emails threatening federal officials, charges state
Minnesotans come together at State Capitol to honor the Hortmans, and more headlines Minnesotans come together at State Capitol to honor the Hortmans, and more headlines Minnesotans come together at State Capitol to honor the Hortmans, and more headlines A North Dakota man faces criminal charges for allegedly sending threatening emails to federal officials, citing the politically motivated shootings of two Minnesota lawmakers and their spouses. According to the complaint filed on Tuesday, the suspect is charged with making interstate threats and threats against a federal official. "Help me before this gets very ugly and personal" An affidavit, written by FBI Special Agent Christopher Potts, states the suspect was upset about a lien placed on his home in St. Thomas, located about 60 miles northwest of Grand Forks, in the summer of 2023. Court records show the suspect had apparently sold his property to a Texas company specializing in "buying homes from homeowners who desire to quickly sell their homes" because he found a new job and needed to move. The suspect claimed he reached a sales agreement with the company, which then turned around and changed the terms and eventually put a lien on the home. He claims he was then fired from the new job, and his attorney bungled subsequent attempts to fight the company before demanding more money and suddenly quitting. In a February 2024 email sent to the U.S. Attorney's Office in North Dakota, the suspect — writing under a pseudonym — allegedly made vaguely violent threats to federal officials while seeking help with his financial crisis, closing the email with this line: "HELP ME BEFORE THIS GETS VERY UGLY AND PERSONAL." The FBI gets involved as legal, financial woes mount Hours later, an agent and officer with the FBI visited the suspect's home to discuss the email, which he denied writing. Court documents state he told law enforcement he wouldn't announce threats ahead of time if he was actually going to follow through, and maintained he had no access to firearms. The FBI decided not to pursue any action at that time The suspect then continued his legal journey, without proper counsel, to fight the lien and collect damages. In September 2024, he filed a lawsuit over the lien issue, but the case was thrown out two months later. He appealed, but focused his claims against the judge who dismissed the case, according to the complaint. North Dakota's Supreme Court eventually dismissed the appeal, citing multiple examples of the suspect's lack of compliance with court rules. In the end, the suspect was only rewarded $1,000 in damages. "I don't want this situation to end up like Minnesota" On Sunday, the suspect allegedly sent more emails to the U.S. Attorney's Office, referencing the murders of House Speaker Emerita Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark, on Saturday inside their home in Brooklyn Park, Minnesota — as well as the shootings of state Sen. John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette, at their Champlin home. "Just sitting here wondering what a law maker and a representative were shot and one dead over in Minnesota and one thing comes to mind, something like that doesn't fall out of the sky now does it," the suspect allegedly wrote. "I'm most certainly not making threats but when law makers make laws and the state doesn't follow the laws they? It would probably piss some people off right." The suspect also reiterated that his pleas for help with his lien situation were ignored, claiming police want to "silence him so public officials could engage in corruption" by withholding the damages he believes are due to him. "Now I'm going to be honest with you I don't want this situation to end up like Minnesota over the weekend, do you," one of the emails read. "I don't know the specifics in this Minnesota case but a representative and a lawmaker were shot and one of them is dead and all of you mentioned above are basically avoiding your responsibility and that is creating some bad situations. I'm not impressed with this corrupt behavior and I'm not going to tolerate it." The man accused in the Minnesota lawmaker shootings, 57-year-old Vance Boelter, is currently in custody and faces multiple federal and state murder charges.
CBS News
a day ago
- CBS News
North Dakota woman killed in 4-vehicle crash near Twin Cities
A woman from North Dakota was killed and three other people were injured in a four-vehicle crash just outside the Twin Cities Wednesday evening. The crash happened on eastbound Interstate 94 in Monticello, Minnesota, around 7:20 p.m., according to the state patrol. All four vehicles were heading in the same direction when "a rear-end collision occurred," the patrol said. A passenger in one of the vehicles, 69-year-old Susan Rintoul of Minot, North Dakota, died at the scene. The patrol said she was not wearing a seatbelt. The driver of her vehicle and two other drivers suffered survivable injuries and were hospitalized for treatment. The fourth driver was unhurt.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Yahoo
UPDATED: Man involved in standoff in Jamestown arrested, child safe
Jun. 18—JAMESTOWN — An hours-long standoff on Wednesday, June 18, at Western Park Village in Jamestown ended after the James Valley Special Operations Team successfully entered the residence, removed a 2-year-old child and arrested a 30-year-old man, according to Maj. Justin Blinsky, assistant chief of police for the city of Jamestown. Jacob Lee Schmitt, of Jamestown, was arrested on suspicion of terrorizing. Schmitt is in the Stutsman County Correctional Center, where he is awaiting formal charges. The incident is under investigation, and additional charges are possible, Blinsky said. The Jamestown Police Department was dispatched to a residence in Western Park Village at about 2 a.m. Wednesday, on a report that a female resident wasn't feeling safe in her home, Blinsky said. He said the woman indicated a man, identified as Schmitt, was inside the residence using drugs and yelling at her. After further investigation, the woman reported that Schmitt had threatened to "kill her," Blinsky said. The woman also told police that Schmitt refused to leave the residence with multiple firearms that the man had access to, he said. Jamestown police officers tried to make contact with Schmitt but he refused to speak with law enforcement and retreated further inside the residence, barricading himself in a back room, Blinsky said. Blinsky said four occupants were evacuated from the home but Schmitt took a 2-year-old child with him to the back room. The James Valley Special Operations Team was activated at 2:50 a.m. Wednesday to help minimize safety risks, he said. The Jamestown Police Department asked residents of Western Park Village to shelter in place, which was lifted after Schmitt was arrested. Blinksky said police were able to communicate with Schmitt while he was inside the residence, but he refused to comply with police requests to come outside or to assist the child in leaving the residence. At about 12:45 p.m., the James Valley Special Operations Team entered the home, removed the child and took Schmitt into custody. The Stutsman County Sheriff's Office, North Dakota Highway Patrol, Jamestown Area Ambulance, Stutsman County Emergency Management and the Jamestown Street Department also assisted at the scene. "We are relieved to hear that the police have confirmed that the child involved is safe, and the individual of concern is now in police custody," said Kathy Grosz, vice president of property management for New Horizon Property Management, which manages Western Park Village. Schmitt was previously denied residency in Western Park Village, Grosz told The Jamestown Sun in an email. "New Horizon remains firmly committed to enforcing our screening procedures to support the safety and security of all residents within our communities," she said, referring to the properties New Horizon manages. "We are thankful this incident ended without physical harm and extend our deep appreciation to law enforcement and emergency personnel for their swift and professional response. We will continue to work closely with authorities as needed and remain focused on the well-being of our communities."
Yahoo
a day ago
- Yahoo
Man arrested after multi-county chase in eastern North Dakota
Jun. 18—GRAND FORKS — A Fort Ransom man was arrested after a multi-county chase in eastern North Dakota. The incident occurred shortly before 11 a.m. on Wednesday, June 18, when a reckless driver was reported driving a 2010 Nissan Cube on Interstate 29 in northern Cass County. According to a report from the North Dakota Highway Patrol, the vehicle was reported to be swerving, brake-checking and not allowing others to pass. A Highway Patrol trooper responded and found the vehicle near mile marker 111 on I-29. The vehicle failed to stop, according to the Highway Patrol report. It exited at mile marker 118 and then merged back to northbound I-29. At mile marker 130, officers were able to spike the vehicle and stop the driver. Arrested was Kevin Anderson, 53, of Fort Ransom. He is charged with a number of driving-related offenses, including three Class C felonies. Agencies involved were the Highway Patrol, the Traill County Sheriff's Office and the Grand Forks County Sheriff's Office.
