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Coach praises Walz’s son for protecting other kids after shooting
Tim Walz’s remarks weren’t his first mention of the shooting, but they offered the biggest stage yet to personalize an issue that has deeply affected.
MINNEAPOLIS — When the issue of gun violence came up at the vice presidential debate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz had a personal story to tell: His teenage son, Gus, had been at a sports center last year when a shooting took place.
Gus Walz was at volleyball practice at the Jimmy Lee Recreation Center in St. Paul the afternoon of Jan. 18, 2023, when a 16-year-old was shot and seriously wounded outside.
It wasn’t the first time Tim Walz had spoken about his son’s brush with gun violence, and the shooting itself was widely publicized locally. But the Democrat’s remarks Tuesday night at his debate with Republican JD Vance, as the public is still getting to know both vice presidential candidates, offered the biggest stage yet to personalize an issue that has deeply affected many American families.
On Wednesday, the youth’s volleyball coach, David Albornoz, praised Gus in an interview with The Associated Press for how he helped get other kids to safety and keep them calm amid the chaotic scene.
“I was impressed by Gus and the kids in general, and how they handled it,” Albornoz said. “Gus stayed with the kids as he was supposed to do.”
The shooting came up as Walz and Vance were debating gun violence.
“Well, I think all the parents watching tonight, this is your biggest nightmare,” Walz said. “Look, I’ve got a 17-year-old and he witnessed a shooting at a community center playing volleyball. Those things don’t leave you.”
Gus didn’t actually see the shooting itself, but he did witness the aftermath, said Albornoz, who is also aquatics facilities supervisor for St. Paul Parks. Among other things, he said, Gus saw Albornoz with blood on his hands from performing first aid on the victim.
Walz briefly brought up the shooting at a campaign rally in Grand Rapids, Michigan, on Sept. 12, when he accused Vance and his running mate, former President Donald Trump, of minimizing gun violence at schools.
“My own son was in a location where someone was shot in the head. Too many of us have this,” the governor told the crowd.
Walz also mentioned it in an interview with Minnesota Public Radio in March, when he said Gus was still dealing with his feelings a year later.
“He was there with little kids, littler kids. He was kind of supervising. He shuffled them under the bleachers,” Walz told MPR.
Albornoz broadly backed up the governor’s version, although his memory was that Gus took the kids back to the pool area, where they waited behind locked doors until they got the all clear.
Gus got national attention during his father’s speech at the Democratic National Convention in August, when he was caught on camera standing up, tears streaming down his face. In a viral moment, Gus pointed to his father and exclaimed, “That’s my dad!”
After Gus got some derision for that, Albornoz posted a tribute on Facebook, saying they met when the teen sought him out to lead a volleyball team. He called Gus a “kid thrown into the fray and turmoil of our current divided and divisive political landscape, deserving of love and respect as he navigates his senior year.” He recalled how they and other kids would often go out for tacos after games.
“I also know him from when a kid got shot in the parking lot and he helped keeping everyone safe and calm, looking after the kids in the gym with us as I rushed out,” he wrote in August.
On Wednesday, Albornoz said Gus is just a regular teen who has suddenly been thrust into the national spotlight.
“He’s a normal kid in extraordinary circumstances,” the coach said.
In February, a judge sentenced Exavir Binford Jr., a rec center employee, to more than 10 years for shooting JuVaughn Turner. Binford pleaded guilty to first-degree assault in exchange for prosecutors dropping an attempted murder charge. Prosecutors say Binford shot Turner in the head during an altercation involving them and other teens. Turner’s family is now suing the city, saying he suffered permanent brain damage. They allege the city knew he had a history of violent conduct and threats to minors. The city has moved to dismiss the lawsuit, saying Binford was not acting within his official duties and had no police powers when he shot Turner.
On Tuesday night, after Walz brought up the shooting, Vance expressed his empathy.
“Tim, first of all, I didn’t know that your 17-year-old witnessed a shooting, and I’m sorry about that. Christ, have mercy. It is awful,” Vance said.
“I appreciate that,” Walz replied.
The cases now total 60+ across 12 metro cities over one year, with police linking some from late last year to a group of Argentina nationals arrested in Pennsylvania
MINNETONKA, Minn. — With his name recognition, the burglary of Minnesota Timberwolves guard Mike Conley’s west metro home made headlines.
But now court documents reveal he is just one of 60 victims across 12 metro cities in what police believe is a sophisticated ring targeting high-end homes for jewelry, with the burglars using “cell phone and Wi-Fi jammers, GPS trackers, surveillance cameras and rental vehicles,” according to a search warrant affidavit.
These groups are not believed to be local, as the only suspects arrested and charged so far have been South Americans accused of crisscrossing the country, conducting surveillance, getting in and out of these homes in mere minutes — then quickly leaving the state.
“That is really scary,” said Nadera, a resident of a Long Lake/Medina neighborhood that’s been hit three times recently.
“What’s happening is it seems like they know where to go,” Nadera said. “That kind of scares me. They’re going to the bedroom and getting what they need, jewelry mostly, and I mean, how do they know?”
“Their methods of entry are all pretty similar,” said Minnetonka Police Assistant Chief Jason Tait.
Minnetonka had three new incidents last month. In one, the suspects appear in the corner of the victim’s doorbell camera.
Tait said they had several last year they linked to a group of Argentina citizens arrested in Pennsylvania.
“Through that investigation, they were able to determine that they arrived in Los Angeles and rented a car there and traveled through the Midwest and across the country doing these burglaries. And they were able to tie it back to different parts of that,” Tait said.
Police are working to trace rental cars, and it shows how swiftly the burglars leave the state.
According to one search warrant, the burglar who broke into Conley’s home had rented a car in Florida on Sept. 11. That car was seen in Hudson on Sept. 13, in Long Lake on Sept. 14 and Sept. 15, then it was spotted back in Georgia just 17 hours after the burglary of Conley’s home.
Court documents show that one Orono homeowner got suspicious of a man driving a car with Texas license plates flying a drone near their home. Police learned that too was a rental car that happened to be parked near the home of Twins owner Jim Pohlad when his Minneapolis home was burglarized last year.
Groups Native Americans for Harris Walz and The Justice and Equity Coalition gave press conferences on how they think communities should vote.
MINNEAPOLIS — After Ohio Senator J.D. Vance and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz faced off in what was likely the only vice presidential debate of this election cycle, multiple groups have now announced how they’re urging their communities to vote.
Native Americans for Harris Walz had a national launch Wednesday, with community members meeting at the Frogtown Community Center to voice their support for the ticket.
“The Native vote is absolutely the margin of victory for Kamala Harris and Tim Walz,” Mattea Twinn, coalitions manager for the Wisconsin Democrats, said.
The group said Harris and Walz are better suited to take care of their needs, including respecting Tribal Nations and protecting sovereignty. Lt. Governor Peggy Flanagan, a member of the White Earth Nation, also spoke.
“Let’s be crystal clear,” Flanagan said. “Native people will absolutely help decide the results of this election. We are located in swing states all across this country.”
Native Americans for Harris Walz was not the only group urging their communities to make a decision this election. The Justice and Equity Coalition also held a press conference Wednesday, voting against the Harris Walz ticket based on policy, and what they say is a lack of action.
“Our message is clear,” one speaker said. “We will not support any leader who enables this brutality.”
The group is urging voters to abandon Harris, citing inaction in the administration as a reason for growing conflict in the Middle East.
“We are asking for people, as we head to this election, to vote for the independent party,” Jaylani Hussein, board member with JEC, said. “We clearly understand that that may mean the return of President Trump, which we are not endorsing.”
A CNN poll conducted immediately after Tuesday’s debate showed 51% of those polled thought Vance did the better job.
Marquise Hammonds-Ford pleaded guilty to illegal possession of a firearm. He will be sentenced next Wednesday.
MINNEAPOLIS — A man charged in the shooting death of an off-duty firefighter pleaded guilty Tuesday to illegally possessing a firearm.
Marquise Hammonds-Ford entered the guilty plea Tuesday, and will be sentenced Wednesday, Oct. 9. As part of the plea, the other charges, including first-degree rioting, were dropped.
Hammonds-Ford was charged back in May for his role in the shooting death of Joseph C. Johns, who served as a career firefighter with the Eagan Fire Department since Jan. 2020. He also served as a duty-crew firefighter with the Eden Prairie Fire Department since Sept. 2015.
According to the criminal complaint, Johns was in a bar on the 900 block of Cedar Avenue South on May 5 when he was caught in the crossfire of a shootout.
Court documents said hundreds were gathered at the bar into Saturday night and Sunday morning to celebrate the founding of a local motorcycle club, of which Johns was a member when shots rang out just after midnight following an alleged altercation between two groups on opposite sides of the bar.
The complaint said investigators found 63 discharged cartridge casings in front of the bar and determined the spent casings came from at least seven separate firearms.
