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Duluth man pleads guilty to criminal sexual conduct with girls

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DULUTH – With freshly selected jurors waiting nearby for the start of an expected days-long trial, a Duluth man facing criminal sexual conduct charges took a last-minute plea deal instead of facing the women he abused when they were children.

Clint Franklin Massie, 49, pleaded guilty Wednesday morning at the St. Louis County Courthouse to the four counts from incidents dating back to 2008-09 when two of his victims were young girls. The deal dismissed one of the counts against him. His sentencing is scheduled for March 20, and he could end up with more than nine years in prison. Massie, who was initially charged in February 2023 and has been out on $300,000 bail, was released until his sentencing.

In each case, the victim was known to Massie — whether they were related or through their shared membership at Old Apostolic Lutheran Church. He was friends with their parents and regarded as a fun, child-free uncle, according to reports from the investigation.

Assistant St. Louis County Attorney Michael Ryan told the court that the victims were satisfied with the deal.

“They have been involved in talking this through,” he said to Judge Dale Harris.

After Massie pleaded guilty, would-be witnesses and their supporters filed into the courtroom filling rows. Massie, dressed in a dark suit coat and khaki pants, turned to look. Ryan questioned him on the victims’ accusations — four specific scenarios where he had touched girls: during a sleepover at his house, when alone on a tractor, or beneath a blanket while others were in the room.

Massie said in court there were a lot of big gatherings and shared meals within this the group. It wasn’t unusual for one of the many children to sit on his lap.

At times Massie paused and said he couldn’t remember exact details or motives. At other times he deferred to what he told investigating officers last year. In each instance he ultimately agreed with the scenario presented by the prosecution.



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One dead, one seriously wounded in shooting in Brooklyn Park strip mall parking lot

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One person died and another was seriously wounded in a shooting Saturday afternoon in a Brooklyn Park parking lot.

Brooklyn Park police officers responded to a shooting around 2 p.m. Saturday in a strip mall parking lot near the busy intersection of Brooklyn Blvd. and Bottineau Blvd., not far from a Target and a Menards.

Officers found two victims and began to aid them before both were taken to a hospital, according to a police spokesman.

One of the victims was later pronounced dead. The other was seriously wounded. Identities for the victims werenot available Saturday night.



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Body found in river in Cannon Falls believed to be that of 60-year-old missing man

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A body found in the Cannon River on Saturday afternoon is believed to be that of a 60-year-old man missing since Monday, Cannon Falls police said.

Christopher Dobson had been missing since Monday night, when a missing person report was filed after he didn’t return home after taking his dog for a walk. Police officers followed footprints in the woods toward the river before requesting assistance, because it was getting cold and dark, from local fire departments, Goodhue and Dakota county sheriff’s offices and the State Patrol, which sent in a helicopter.

The search continued for much of the week with aerial and amphibious drones as well as rescue personnel on the ground.

When the body was found in the river Saturday afternoon, the missing person search was suspended pending positive identification of the body by the medical examiner’s office.



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Red Lake police officer Jesse Branch remembered as public servant, cowboy, lover of pranks

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“At that age, you would think that people would be a little bit more open to what they wanted to do. But Jesse, I think he had a pretty good idea,” Riggs said.

“He was one of those kind of kids that was just involved in a lot of different stuff — one of which being the rodeo — and wanting to be a part of this [law enforcement] community for so long, and then he finally got his dream to come true.”

Branch joined the sheriff’s posse, following in the footsteps and gallops of his father, Leonard Branch, and served North Country First Responders in Bemidji. The law enforcement agencies of Red Lake, Bemidji and Beltrami County work closely together, Riggs said, so a loss like this impacts many first responders.

“Officer Branch was a member of our community,” Riggs said. “He was truly a servant with a servant’s heart, and served in the capacity of so many things, you know, someone who volunteers that kind of time for their community, for the betterment of public safety, is truly a servant.”

Loved ones told stories during services Saturday for Red Lake police officer Jesse Branch, who died in a car crash when responding to a call the day before Thanksgiving. The funeral was held at the Red Lake Nation Tribal College’s Humanities Center in Red Lake, Minn. (Anthony Souffle/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

Kingbird said he grew up in Red Lake but that Branch “knew more people here than I did.” It was reflected in the crowd that gathered in the campus humanities building and the long procession that traveled from Red Lake to Bemidji for Branch’s burial at Holy Cross Cemetery.

“It’s a tragic day for law enforcement,” said Minnesota Public Safety Commissioner Bob Jacobson. “Anytime we lose somebody who serves on public safety, police officers, firefighters, we want to be present to honor the sacrifice that they made. Be here for their fellow law enforcement officers, for their families that are grieving. It just takes a toll on the whole community, and we want to be here to honor them.”



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