July 29, 2003 - New federal data shows the AIDS rate is up for the first time in 10 years. In 2002, the number of Americans diagnosed with AIDS increased 2.2-percent. The news is worse in Minnesota. The number of new AIDS cases here rose 6-percent in 2002, largely due to new infections among African immigrants. Bob Tracy is the director of community affairs and education at the Minnesota AIDS Project. He says it's important to pay attention to national trends. But he says Minnesotans should also be aware of what's happening in their own backyard.
July 28, 2003 - Snoring has caused more than a few sleepless nights for snorers and the people who love them. But snoring can go well beyond a minor annoyance. It disturbs sleep patterns and deprives snorers of appropriate rest. At its worst, it can cause serious, long-term health problems, including obstructive sleep apnea. A Minnesota company has designed a treatment to provide snoring sufferers with permanent relief. Susan Critzer, the president and CEO of St. Paul's Restore Medical, says more than 20 million Americans suffer from snoring.
July 25, 2003 - It's a cattle drive of historic proportions. For the first time in 40 years, animals from the U-S have been exported to Cuba. A shipment of one hundred forty cattle and bison from Minnesota and other midwestern states arrived in Cuba yesterday. Agricultural sales are allowed as an exception to the U-S trade embargo against Cuba. Ralph Kaehler , a farmer from St. Charles, coordinated the shipment. Kaehler said the Cuban buyers got more than they bargained for.
July 25, 2003 -
July 24, 2003 - The prosecutor in a high-profile Duluth murder case 26 years ago says tests of DNA on an old envelope confirm the prosecution's case. From the beginning, authorities suspected Roger and Marjorie Caldwell of entering Glensheen mansion and killing Duluth heiress Elisabeth Congdon and her night nurse Velma Pietila. As Elisabeth's adopted daughter, Marjorie Caldwell, stood to inherit a substantial sum from Congdon's 8 million dollar estate. Roger Caldwell was convicted of the murder and Marjorie was aquitted. She was later convicted of arson in an Arizona case and is still serving time. Caldwell committed suicide in 1988, but maintained innocence in his suicide note. John de Santo, one of the prosecutors in the murder case, has just co-authored a book called "Will to Murder." He says new evidence proves the couple's guilt.
July 24, 2003 - The prosecutor in a high-profile Duluth murder case 26 years ago says tests of DNA on an old envelope confirm the prosecution's case. From the beginning, authorities suspected Roger and Marjorie Caldwell of entering Glensheen mansion and killing Duluth heiress Elisabeth Congdon and her night nurse Velma Pietila. As Elisabeth's adopted daughter, Marjorie Caldwell, stood to inherit a substantial sum from Congdon's 8 million dollar estate. Roger Caldwell was convicted of the murder and Marjorie was aquitted. She was later convicted of arson in an Arizona case and is still serving time. Caldwell committed suicide in 1988, but maintained innocence in his suicide note. John de Santo, one of the prosecutors in the murder case, has just co-authored a book called "Will to Murder." He says new evidence proves the couple's guilt.
July 24, 2003 - A new economic study paints a picture of a thriving Twin Cities art scene. University of Minnesota researchers say artists - and in particular dancers and writers - comprise more of the workforce here than in other similar-sized metropolitan areas. And the concentration of artists is growing fast. It's on pace with Seattle and Albuquerque and growing faster than Chicago, Atlanta and Dallas. Ann Markeson is director of the Project on Regional and Industrial Economics at the Humphrey Institute. She says that artists are highly enreprenurial and represent a hidden arts dividend for the economy.
July 22, 2003 - Governor Tim Pawlenty has filed a new statement of economic interest with the state Campaign Finance board. He's also registered a now-defunct consulting business with the state's legal practices board. The new filings came yesterday and are an attempt to dispel controversies surrounding his use BAMCO, his one-man consulting business, to accept payments from a pay-phone company. Former governor Arne Carlson is a fellow republican who believes the issue is far from settled. He says Pawlenty is likely to face tough questions when a legislative committee begins to look at the issue next month.
July 22, 2003 - In an election fraud complaint, state Republicans allege that U.S. Sen. Mark Dayton should have voted as a homeless person last November because he had sold his Minneapolis mansion. The GOP leaders contend Dayton, a DFL'er, voted illegally in a precinct where he no longer resided. Republicans say because Dayton had a post office box but no address in Minnesota, he should have voted under special procedures for the homeless. A Dayton spokesperson said the senator went to great lengths to make sure he was voting correctly, and had just not yet had a chance to sign his new lease. Secretary of State Mary Kiffmeyer says Minnesota election law is quite complex--and cases like Dayton's are typically settled in the courts. However, she says residents who know they are not eligible to vote but do so anyway are guilty of a felony.
July 21, 2003 - The Minnesota Department of Agriculture predicts a good summer for the state's grains, corn, and soybean growers. State Agricultural Statistician Michael Hunst hunt st says the recent weather has been good for crops.