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Shannon Gooden’s girlfriend accused of straw purchasing weapons used in Burnsville first responder killings
MINNEAPOLIS — U.S. Attorney Andrew Luger and law enforcement officials announced an indictment Thursday in the Burnsville shooting that killed three first responders.
Ashley Dyrdahl is accused of straw purchasing the weapons used in the shooting, Luger’s office said.
Dyrdahl “conspired with Shannon Cortez Gooden to place firearms in Gooden’s hands, despite the fact Gooden could not legally own or possess firearms,” the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Minnesota alleges.
Drydahl was Gooden’s on-again, off-again girlfriend. Police say Gooden killed Burnsville police officers Matthew Ruge, Paul Elmstrand and paramedic Adam Finseth during a standoff last month.
“The indictment makes it clear that Dyrdahl and Gooden knew exactly what they were doing,” Luger said. “That he could not purchase firearms because he was a convicted felon. So instead, he would pick out specific weapons and she would buy them in violation of federal law — placing powerful weapons in the hands of a violent, convicted felon.”
The indictment alleges Dyrdahl bought five guns for Gooden between September 2023 and January 2024, including two AR-15-style weapons used during the standoff.
USAO
Luger announced the indictment at 11 a.m. at the U.S. Courthouse in Minneapolis. He was joined by Burnsville Fire Chief BJ Jungmann, Burnsville Police Chief Tanya Schwartz and other law enforcement leaders.
“We will never stop seeking justice for Matt, Paul, Adam and their families,” Schwartz said.
WCCO
Luger said Dyrdahl will surrender to U. S. Marshals and will make an initial appearance before a federal judge in St. Paul at 3 p.m. She faces up to 15 years in prison.
Authorities were answering a domestic assault call on Feb. 18 when Gooden opened fire. The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, the investigating agency, said Gooden fired off more than 100 rounds during the standoff.
According to the indictment, Gooden was convicted of second-degree assault in Dakota County in 2008, which prevented him from legally owning guns. Dyrdahl knew Gooden’s conviction precluded him from owning firearms, even writing a letter in 2020 in support of restoring his gun rights.
USAO
“The consequences of this disregard for public safety are beyond comprehension,” Luger said.
RELATED: ATF agent on dangers of straw purchasers: “They are on the same level as the actual trigger pullers”
Gooden died by suicide after killing the first responders, authorities said.
WCCO discovered two of the guns used are being investigated as straw purchases. That’s when someone buys a gun for someone who is prohibited from having one. In this case, firearms purchased by someone else ended up in Gooden’s hands.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office convened a federal grand jury in the investigation into the shooting. Noemi Torres was subpoenaed to testify on Tuesday. She’s the mother of three of Gooden‘s children.
The public funeral for all three responders was held in late February.
Court records show long history of domestic incidents
Dyrdahl’s relationship with Gooden goes back about 15 years, but their first child together was born in 2016. Court filings say their relationship turned volatile the following year.
According to documents, Dyrdahl filed an order of protection against Gooden alleging domestic assault.
She accused him of head-butting her and throwing her down the stairs. The order was dismissed because Dyrdahl failed to appear in court.
The following month, Gooden called police and accused Dyrdahl of showing up to a child exchange drunk with their son in the car. She was convicted of DWI in the case; she also has a previous DWI conviction.
A few days after that incident, the two established custody and how much time each of them would spend with the child. Then in 2020, Dyrdahl was a character witness for Gooden when he petitioned to have his gun rights restored through the courts.
“Shannon has stayed on track with his life and his goals,” she is quoted in the petition as saying.
The county attorney opposed the petition, citing, among other reasons, Dyrdahl’s earlier filing for an order of protection.
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Long before comic book characters dominated movie screens, actor Christopher Reeve made the world believes in superheroes with the 1978 classic “Superman.”
Reeve died in 2004, nearly a decade after an accident re-shaped his life. “Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story” is using interviews with family and friends and never-before-seen home videos to explore his real-life heroism.
Reeve started his career on the stage, studying at the prestigious Juilliard School and living with comedian Robin Williams. The pair had a friendship that was “more like a brotherhood,” said Reeve’s son Matthew. Reeve was in awe of Williams’ energy and versatility, Matthew Reeve said, but audiences quickly clued into Reeve’s own star power when he took on the role of the Man of Steel.
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To his children, though, he “was just dad,” Matthew Reeve said. The documentary explores how Matthew Reeve and his sister Alexandra Reeve Givens grew up watching their dad take the stage as Superman. “Super/Man” also reveals their heartbreak over their parents’ breakup and the joy they found when Reeve re-married. He tied the knot with Dana Reeve in 1992, and the pair welcomed another child, William Reeve, later that year.
“Dana was sunshine,” Alexandra Reeve Givens recalled. “She just brought joy with her wherever she was and could find it even in the darkest moments.”
Those dark moments came suddenly, when in 1995, a near-fatal horseback riding accident left Reeve paralyzed from the neck down. The documentary allows viewers to see, for the first time, what went on out of the public’s view. Reeve can be heard talking about how he “ruined (his) life and everybody else’s,” but in a touching moment, old friend Robin Williams is seen visiting him in the hospital.
“Robin showed him ‘Hey, you’re still you,'” Alexandra Reeve Givens said. “‘You still have this foundation of friendship and people around you, who adore you. And you’re going to find those fun moments in life again.'”
That support from friends and family re-ignited Reeve’s legacy of activism. He made appearances at the Democratic National Convention and the 68th Academy Awards in 1996, about a year after the accident. Matthew Reeve said watching his father address his industry peers at the Oscars was “one of (his) most proud moments.”
“It was just a production for him to get out of bed every morning, let alone get across the country and go out in public for the first time,” Matthew Reeve said. “It was a big deal. It was a big deal to him, but it was also a big deal to the entire disability community. We stayed up in London till like three in the morning to watch that live. It’s a fond memory.”
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Reeve also went on to launch what would become the Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation, which is dedicated to advancing research into spiral cord injury and help individuals and families impacted by paralysis. It was his dad’s mission to find a cure, Matthew Reeve said, while his stepmother wanted to focus on improving the lives of paralyzed people and their families. The foundation and Reeve’s platform helped bring unprecedented attention and funding to spinal cord injury research.
Reeve even kept acting and realized his lifelong dream of directing with the 1997 HBO movie “In the Gloaming.” Reeve died in 2004 from heart failure at 52.
“There is a huge amount of great actors and actresses out there, where their filmography might be amazing and what they achieve on a cultural level might be amazing, but have they actually achieved anything really as a human that moves the needle for our society?” said filmmaker Ian Bonhote, who made the documentary with Peter Ettedgui. “And Chris has done both things.”
“Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story” will open in theaters on Friday, Oct. 11.
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