Star Tribune
Man charged with attempted murder in standoff with police in Oakdale
A man accused of shooting at police Monday night during an hours-long standoff in Oakdale was charged Wednesday with attempted murder and assault.
Devione Leeante Malone, 25, of St. Paul, faces seven charges in Washington County District Court, including two counts of first-degree attempted murder of a police officer, four counts of first-degree assault of a police officer, and one count of illegally possessing a firearm.
Malone, who has a lengthy rap sheet that includes convictions for first-degree arson and assaulting a correctional officer, was being held in the Washington County Jail ahead of his initial court appearance Thursday.
According to the criminal complaint, Oakdale police responded to a 911 call at about 10 p.m. Monday from a a man who said a woman he knew and her toddler granddaughter were in a vehicle with Malone and “needed assistance.” The woman had a no-contact order against Malone.
Officers spotted the vehicle in the 7000 block of N. 10th Street and attempted to surround it in a parking lot, but Malone drove off down Hadley Avenue, according to the charges. Police followed as the car pulled into the driveway of the woman’s house in the 100 block of Greystone Avenue N. in Oakdale.
After Malone exited the car, he fired one shot at a squad car as it turned into the driveway. The bullet hit the car’s front fender and ricocheted into the squad’s passenger-side mirror. After Malone ran inside the house, the woman got her granddaughter out of their car and ran toward the officers, the complaint says. Neither she nor the child were hurt, police said Tuesday.
Officers took cover behind four Oakdale squad cars outside the house. Squad car video footage shows Malone opening a window in the home and firing three more shots. One bullet hit the windshield of a squad car near where an officer was standing, the charges said.
The Washington County SWAT team responded with an armored vehicle and took Malone into custody after he surrendered at about 12:30 a.m. Tuesday. Police found no one else inside the home, and recovered a .22-caliber handgun and spent shell casings from inside, charges say.
Police interviewed the woman, who said Malone’s mood had changed earlier in the day and that she “knew she had to get her granddaughter away” from him. She texted her friend, who alerted police.
The woman told officers that Malone had a gun because he carried “all the time and everywhere.” She said that as officers started showing up, Malone told her he was “tired of them following me” and “I’ll die before I go back to prison.”
According to the charges, Malone admitted to police that he carried the .22-caliber handgun, which he was barred from doing because of previous convictions for violent crimes, and said he believed he was going to jail because he had violated the no-contact order. He said he did not recall shooting at police.
Some take him up on it and fret when he’s not around.
“It is nice to be missed and be part of the school’s culture,” Arzola said. But mostly, he added, he wants kids to know that police aren’t around just for when the bad stuff happens. He’ll hand out his stickers and bracelets, even a trading card bearing his image. Then, they’ll talk about dogs and family.
School resource officer Al Arzola talks to students in his office at John Adams Middle School in Rochester on Oct. 11. (Leila Navidi/The Minnesota Star Tribune)
Two months ago, Rochester played host to a three-day training session for new SROs from across the state — an event organized by the Minnesota School Safety Center. On the final day, the 26 officers learned about surveillance challenges at the other school where Arzola works: Dakota Middle School.
It is a beautiful building with a scenic view. There is a lot of glass, too. Arzola, handling the role of instructor and tour guide, took the group outside and noted how one could look straight through the entrance to the large groups that gather inside. There were no curbs in front, either.
“There is nothing stopping any vehicle whatsoever from going through my front doors,” Arzola told the officers. “Law enforcement wasn’t talked to before this building was made. It was kind of like, ‘Here it is. You’re the SRO. Do what you do.’”
He showed them his office, too, which is separate from the main office and near those of other school support staff members. That makes sense, said Jenny Larrive, SRO coordinator for the Minnesota School Safety Center, given than SROs spend more time connecting with youth than on actual law enforcement.
“The basic rule in Minnesota is you cannot preemptively post law enforcement at a polling place,” he said. “A city can’t say, ‘Wow, Precinct Two, there’s a lot of intensity there, let’s just put a cop at the door.’”
Simon doesn’t go deep into the details on security, though. “I don’t want to give a total road map to the bad guys,” he said.
But testimony at the Capitol last year on behalf of the new law bolstering protections for election and polling place workers indicated there’s room for concern. One election worker was followed to her car by an angry voter; the head of elections in another county was called repeatedly on her home phone during off hours, and an official was lunged at by an aggrieved voter, forcing her to call the local sheriff.
Those who violate the law could now face civil damages and penalties of up to $1,000 for each violation.
The Brennan Center survey indicated more than four in 10 election leaders were concerned about recruiting enough poll workers due to threats of harassment and intimidation. This includes doxing — publishing a person’s personal information online in a threatening manner — and swatting, fake emergency calls that result in an armed response being sent to someone’s home.
“Election officials are working to prepare for everything right now,” said Liz Howard, director of partnership engagement at the Brennan Center. “More than 90% of election officials have made improvements to election security since 2020.”
Star Tribune
Daylight saving time ends next weekend. This is how to prepare for the potential health effects
The good news: You will get a glorious extra hour of sleep. The bad: It’ll be dark as a pocket by late afternoon for the next few months in the U.S.
Daylight saving time ends at 2 a.m. local time next Sunday, Nov. 3, which means you should set your clock back an hour before you go to bed. Standard time will last until March 9 when we will again ”spring forward” with the return of daylight saving time.
That spring time change can be tougher on your body. Darker mornings and lighter evenings can knock your internal body clock out of whack, making it harder to fall asleep on time for weeks or longer. Studies have even found an uptick in heart attacks and strokes right after the March time change.
”Fall back” should be easier. But it still may take a while to adjust your sleep habits, not to mention the downsides of leaving work in the dark or trying exercise while there’s still enough light. Some people with seasonal affective disorder, a type of depression usually linked to the shorter days and less sunlight of fall and winter, may struggle, too.
Some health groups, including the American Medical Association and American Academy of Sleep Medicine, have said it’s time to do away with time switches and that sticking with standard time aligns better with the sun — and human biology.
Most countries do not observe daylight saving time. For those that do — mostly in Europe and North America — the date that clocks are changed varies.
Two states — Arizona and Hawaii — don’t change and stay on standard time.
Here’s what to know about the twice yearly ritual.
