Star Tribune
Sovereign citizen told Minnesota police, FBI that his homemade explosives were for rocket hobby
According to charges, investigators also retrieved multiple documents related to American Nationals and the Minnesota State Assembly — which law enforcement defined as a sovereign citizen movement. Lund declared that he is a “American National,” and was covered under the “law of the land.” He said that all 50 states were assembling their own state assemblies and that North Carolina has recently established a family global bank to control American National currency called “American Federate Dollars.”
“It has taken Lund five or six years to understand everything,” Tobin wrote in Lund’s criminal complaint, referring to his knowledge of the American Nationals.
According to the complaint, when told by the investigator that he was barred from possessing ammunition as a felon, Lund replied: “Oh, no. There’s a little difference to that. There’s a difference between the public and the private. I did my certificate of assumed name, which separates me from the public and private side of things.”
Tobin wrote that she interpreted this exchange as Lund saying that because he is a sovereign citizen — or “private” — he is exempt from criminal law if he is not planning to harm anyone. She added that many self-proclaimed sovereign citizens believe they are not subject to any federal laws or jurisdictions within the United States.
Criminal charges against Lund cite a website for the Minnesota State Assembly, in particular a passage reading: “Reclaim your Status as American State Nationals and American State Citizens and help finish the Reconstruction of our Actual government that was vacated after the civil war.”
“American Nationals believe that they can declare themselves sovereign, or private parties, and no longer be subjected to the rules and laws of the U.S. government,” Tobin wrote. “This extends to the belief that sovereign citizens or ‘privates’ do not have to obey criminal laws.”
Tired of surging gun violence across St. Paul, community leaders and police are asking residents to help create a safer city.
The call for community support came Thursday night when officials from the St. Paul NAACP, St. Paul Police Department, Black Interdenominational Ministerial Alliance and the African American Leadership Council gathered at Arlington Hills Lutheran Church to talk about ways to decrease gun violence in the city.
St. Paul has recorded 30 homicides so far this year according to a Star Tribune database, two fewer than last year. But four of this year’s homicides happened in the same week, frustrating law enforcement and alarming residents.
St. Paul NAACP President Richard Pittman Sr. said that solutions to gun violence are “right here, in the room.” But without the community’s help, Pittman said their efforts could fall short.
“Over the last several weeks and months, we have experienced an uptick in violent crimes in our communities. [That’s] turned on a light bulb that it’s time [to] not have the police feeling like all the pressure is on them,” Pittman said. “Nobody wants to the responsibility of having to shoot someone down in the street. Nobody wants the responsibility of hurting somebody’s family. We all want the best outcome.”
Attendee Carrie Johnson worried generational trauma is derailing youth’s behavior, adding that she’s seen boys in middle school punch girls in the face. Migdalia Baez said mothers living along Rice Street feel they have nowhere to turn for help in redirecting their children. Some worry that their child would be incarcerated if they ask for help.
Larry McPherson, a violence interrupter for 21 Days of Peace St. Paul, said some issues stem from youth with no guidance. McPherson and others patrol hot spots for crime across the city, including near the Midway neighborhood’s Kimball Court apartments where fentanyl drove a spike in robberies and drug violations.
“We’ve got a lot of mental health [struggles]. We’ve got a lot of doggone drug addiction that’s going on in our neighborhoods. We all got the best interests at hand for all people in our community, but we’re just not working fast enough,” McPherson said. “Until we get feet on the ground, people coming out of their own community and standing up for this real cause to take back the community, we’re going to have the same outcome.”
A woman died after being struck by a car Friday afternoon in the parking lot of the Shoppes at Knollwood in St. Louis Park, police said.
First responders answered the call at about 1:30 p.m. and attempted lifesaving efforts, but the victim was declared dead at the scene by paramedics. Her name and age were not released.
Authorities said the driver of the car that struck the woman was cooperating with investigators. The shopping center, known previously as Knollwood Mall, is on Hwy. 7 at Hwy. 169.
St. Louis Park police were leading the investigation with the help of the Hennepin County sheriff’s and medical examiner’s offices and the State Patrol.
He said in a phone call Friday afternoon that he was not being serious.
“It was a private chatroom with a relatively limited group of people, that contained primarily facetious, sarcastic, dark humor,” Parsneau said. “What I said was not meant as anything serious, and somebody went out of their way and targeted me, and that got forwarded to Rep. Finstad, who I believe understands facetiousness.”
He acknowledged his comment was an “insensitive statement,” and said he was not advocating for anyone’s assassination or curtailing the investigation into Thompson’s killing, he added in a Facebook message.
“It was meant to be about the larger social media reaction to the crime, which I believe reflects public frustration with the health insurance industry and the countless tragic stories of denied health care,” Parsneau said. “Rep. Finstad should spend his time addressing that crisis instead of being a cancel culture activist.”
Parsneau said on Friday he has not been asked to resign. A university spokesman confirmed he has tenure.
Edward Inch, Minnesota State Mankato’s president, said in a statement Thursday afternoon that Parsneau’s comment was made on a personal Facebook account and not endorsed by the university.
