A St. Paul man who shot an auto theft suspect who walked into his yard was sentenced to three years of probation.

Ramsey County District Judge George Stephenson also ordered Vincent Nesta Trotter to attend his men’s group, which works with men who have been convicted of crimes.

Trotter was sentenced this week on one count of dangerous discharge of a weapon. The 37-year-old pleaded guilty in late October after the prosecution and defense negotiated a settlement.

Trotter, who has a permit to carry a handgun, was charged after officers who were searching for suspects who ran from a stolen car in the Payne-Phalen neighborhood heard gunshots coming from Trotter’s yard last April.

They found Jalik Combs, who police said had been driving the stolen car, wounded, and Trotter holding a handgun.

Trotter initially told officers that he shot Combs, 20, after he drove up to his house and saw the man standing on his property. He fired, Trotter reportedly told officers, when he instructed the intruder not to move and the man did.

Trotter’s account didn’t match what police say they uncovered from a security camera on his house.

That footage showed Combs walking away from Trotter and Trotter advancing on him before “a“muzzle flash appeared in the form of smoke from Trotter’s gun,” according to court documents.

Police recovered Trotter’s .45-caliber handgun and a holster, which was near the front tire of his car. Six spent .45-caliber casings also were found in the area.

Combs was taken to Regions Hospital for treatment of gunshot wounds to his upper arm and buttocks, and then booked into the Ramsey County jail on suspicion of auto theft.

When officers interviewed Combs, he said he hadn’t been involved in the auto theft.

Two more Hells Outcasts members have been implicated in what authorities say was a coordinated attack against a bouncer who told members of the biker gang they were not allowed to wear gang colors inside the St. Paul establishment.

Anthony Joseph Ledo, 38, of St. Paul, and Richard John Mader, 41, of Vadnais Heights, were charged Monday with committing crimes for the benefit of a gang, third-degree assault and riot, according to criminal complaints filed in Ramsey County District Court.

The charges come more than a year after authorities say members of the gang assaulted a bouncer at Saloon Bar in the 1000 block of Hudson Road Nov. 9, 2018. The assault was in retaliation for a new rule at the bar that prevented Hells Outcasts members from wearing their gang colors in the bar and getting served, though members of other gangs could, according to the charges.

Surveillance video shows Ledo arrive at the bar about 11:15 p.m. that night and push past the bouncer who tried to stop him because he was wearing his gang vest and yellow work gloves at the time, the criminal complaint said. Footage shows the bouncer follow Ledo inside, where he tries to get him to either leave or take off his vest.

Instead, Ledo pushed the bouncer and sat back down, charges say.

Several other Hells Outcast members, including Mader, arrived shortly thereafter.

Six gang members were surrounding the bouncer when Justin Raymon Wainner, another Hells Outcasts member, arrived. That’s when the six started assaulting the bouncer, the complaint said.

Meanwhile Wainner and Mader stood on the perimeter and appeared to block others in the bar from interfering, according to the charges.

At one point, Ledo was reportedly seen smiling before pushing the bouncer down, according to the charges.

Ledo and Mader are scheduled to make their first appearances on the charges Feb. 6. No attorney was listed for them in court records.

Wainner, 42, Patrick Thomas Maykoski, 50, Joseph Michael Prantner, 35, and John George Johnson, 57, were also charged in connection with the assault.

Maykoski pleaded guilty to one count of aiding and abetting third-degree assault this past August and was sentenced in October to 30 days in jail and five years of probation.

Prantner entered an Alford plea to one count of unlawful possession of a firearm and is scheduled to be sentenced in March. He was accused of stealing the bouncer’s firearm during the altercation.

Wainner was acquitted this past December of one of the various charges filed against him but the jury failed to reach consensus on the other counts. Prosecutors are retrying those counts and a new jury is scheduled to hear the case in March.

Wainner is accused of threatening to “shoot up” the bar that night. 

A jury convicted Johnson of all the counts filed against him in the case. He is scheduled to be sentenced Feb. 11.

The bouncer sustained injuries to his eyes, and knee and was subsequently diagnosed with vision problems, according to court documents.

The Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis will join the Ramsey County Attorney’s Office in hosting a conference Thursday aimed at highlighting the steps taken to protect children from clergy sexual abuse.

Survivors, as well as other members of the public impacted by clergy abuse, are invited to attend the daylong event.

It will take place from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Holiday Inn and Suites in Lake Elmo located at 8511 Hudson Blvd.

Archbishop Bernard Hebda as well as Ramsey County Attorney John Choi will share the latest information on the settlement agreement reached between prosecutors and the archdiocese after Ramsey County filed several counts of child endangerment against the archdiocese back in 2015.

The charges accused the archdiocese of mishandling the allegations of repeated misconduct by former St. Paul priest, Curtis Wehmeyer. Wehmeyer was convicted of molesting two boys in Minnesota and one in Wisconsin.

The charges were dismissed after the two sides reached the settlement in 2016.

The agreement called for an acknowledgement of wrongdoing by the archdiocese as well as the implementation of a new child-protection plan aimed at preventing similar abuses.

The plan, subject to routine court oversight, included broader background checks for clergy and volunteers, child-protection training and mandatory reporting of abuse as well as other changes.

The three-year oversight period comes to an end next week.

Additionally, a retired judge will talk about restorative justice at Thursday’s event, and a panel of survivors will share some of their experiences.

A St. Paul man with a history of sneaking into suburban homes to nab owners’ keys so he can steal their vehicles is accused of pulling the same scheme at a Falcon Heights house this past summer.

A couple who lived in the home woke up last Aug. 15 to discover their home was burglarized overnight, authorities say.

The burglar cut a hole in their screen to gain entry, and stole credit cards and the keys to the couple’s Toyoto Corolla. The vehicle also was missing.

Police spotted the stolen vehicle speeding down a St. Paul alley later that afternoon and pulled it over.

Ajoko Gaye, 21, was inside, with the couple’s stolen credit cards in his pocket, according to the criminal complaint filed Wednesday in Ramsey County District Court. Gaye is charged with first-degree burglary and vehicle theft.

The incident followed the same pattern Gaye deployed at homes he burglarized in 2014 and 2016, authorities say.

When Gaye was just 16, he broke into a home in Plymouth while a woman slept inside and tried to make on-line purchases on her computer with credit cards he found inside the house.

Then he pocketed the credit cards, cash and the keys to the woman’s Honda CRV before taking off in the vehicle.

Gaye confessed to the crime, court records say. He was later adjudicated delinquent of first-degree burglary.

Two years later, Gaye burglarized two more homes, one in Plymouth and another in Brooklyn Park, authorities say.

He stole credit cards, a flat screen television, a laptop and  watch from one of the residences, and vehicle keys and a Honda Civic from the other.

Gaye was convicted of theft of a motor vehicle in the latter incident in April of 2016.

He is expected to make his first court date in the latest case next month. No attorney was listed for him in court records.

Taral Junior Holmes tried to bring his gun into Born’s Bar in St. Paul earlier this month. When a bouncer found it during a pat-search, he was denied entry.

Afterward, Holmes was outside the Rice Street bar when he threw a punch that landed on another man’s head and neck, according to a criminal complaint. Then he started shooting at the man from close range before taking off.

The gunfire missed the target during the Jan. 14 incident, according to criminal charges.

That’s the account in the Ramsey County Attorney’s Office criminal complaint filed Thursday evening. The 35-year-old St. Paul man is charged with one count of attempted second-degree murder and two counts of unlawful possession of a firearm.

Holmes has four felonies on his record, including a first-degree drug charge, second-degree assault and unlawful possession of a firearm by an ineligible person.

When he was arrested in the recent shooting, police found a 50-round capacity drum magazine in his backpack, and 9 mm handgun in a vehicle, according to the charges.

The vehicle belonged to his girlfriend, and she reportedly said the firearm didn’t belong to her.

Holmes was scheduled to make his first court appearance on the allegations Friday morning. No attorney was listed for him in court records.

A Champlin woman who took advantage of her aging mother’s deteriorating mental health by writing checks to herself totaling more than $50,000 will spend 90 days in jail.

Jane Francis Barbosa, 54, also was ordered to pay restitution in the case.

Ramsey County District Judge Joy Bartscher sentenced Barbosa on Friday, about two months after Barbosa pleaded guilty to one of the four felonies in the case. 

The other three filed against her were dismissed as part of a plea agreement.

That agreement included keeping Barbosa out of jail if she paid back the money she owed by her sentencing date, her defense attorney, David Sjoberg, said Friday.

But she wasn’t able to come up with the money in time, so jail time came back into play.

When given a chance to speak at the hearing, Barbosa expressed remorse as well as her desire to pay her mother back as soon as possible, Sjoberg said.

Barbosa was charged with two theft counts and two counts of financial exploitation of a vulnerable adult this past April after investigators learned via her mother’s attorney that the 90-plus-year-old St. Paul woman was feeling “scared and intimidated” by her daughter, according to the criminal complaint.

The woman told her attorney that her daughter recently demanded she write her a check for $60,000 and noted she made similar demands of her in the past.

After reviewing the woman’s bank records, investigators noted several checks written to Barbosa, including one for $10,000, another for $7,000 and a third for $7,000.

Barbosa told investigators that the checks were loans from her mother, but her mother told investigators she hadn’t been aware of them.

Barbosa has no prior criminal history in Minnesota.

An 18-year-old fatally shot a St. Paul man in the back last week shortly after the man robbed him during a marijuana deal, according to criminal charges.

Darrion Isaiah Gresham, also known as Darrion Gresham Coats, was arrested last weekend after others allegedly involved — as well as video surveillance footage — revealed him to be the shooter, according to a criminal complaint filed in Ramsey County District Court.

He is charged with two counts of second-degree murder in the death of Larnell Brown, a 42-year-old father.

A man who had been with Brown last Tuesday told police that the two met with Gresham to buy marijuana from him, the complaint said.

They climbed into Gresham’s BMW to conduct the exchange, according to the complaint, and drove to a liquor store near University Avenue and Arundel Street.

That’s when Brown and his friend pulled out guns and robbed Gresham, according to criminal charges.

Brown took marijuana from a bag that belonged to Gresham, then grabbed the keys to Gresham’s BMW, and got out of the vehicle along with his accomplice.

As the two men walked away down an alley, gunshots rang out. Brown’s friend started running, and Brown was hit, according to the complaint.

The friend fired back toward Gresham, and then ditched his gun, according to the complaint.

Surveillance footage shows Brown make contact with someone else nearby and hand over his gun. Then he went across the street and collapsed, according to the charges.

Metro Transit police who were on patrol in the area heard the gunshots. One of them saw a man wearing a black jacket standing in the sidewalk of Arundel Street holding a handgun in his extended left hand as he fired down the street, according to the criminal complaint.

Shortly thereafter police discovered Brown, keeled over and holding his hands to his chest.

Brown was taken to Regions Hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 4:33 p.m.

Five 9mm casings were found near the vehicle, and police towed the BMW.

Suspecting Gresham’s involvement, one of the officers called a number associated with him and heard a phone ring inside the vehicle, according to the criminal complaint.

Police also interviewed both men seen with Brown that night.

The man who said he was an accomplice to the robbery identified Gresham from a lineup as the shooter with 50 percent certainty the first time around, and 70 percent the second time, according to the charges.

Police later recovered “high-quality” surveillance footage of the incident from a nearby store, and officers familiar with Gresham recognized him as the driver of the BMW that day, the complaint said.

Officers also were able to find Brown’s and his accomplice’s discarded handguns.

The Ramsey County medical examiner determined Brown died from a gunshot wound to the back.

Gresham’s next court appearance on the charges is scheduled for Feb. 10.

He was adjudicated delinquent for unlawful possession of a firearm in 2018.

When asked during a recent panel discussion to explain how the sexual abuse Ben Hoffman endured by former St. Paul priest Curtis Wehmeyer impacted his life, the 26-year-old didn’t hold back.

He described how he spent years feeling somehow responsible for the abuse he and his two brothers endured as children by Wehmeyer, and how he eventually turned to drugs, alcohol and work to “fill the void” left in him.

He also found himself hating the church and the Catholic faith.

But today Hoffman is a married father to a two-and-a-half-year-old boy and has reclaimed his faith. In fact, he recently left a corporate job at Best Buy to devote more time to ministry work.

Hoffman was among those attending a court hearing in the Ramsey County District Courthouse Tuesday alongside his brothers and mother.

At the hearing Ramsey County dismissed its child protection case against the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis.

It brings to an end four years of court monitoring brought about after Ramsey County Attorney John Choi filed civil and criminal charges against the archdiocese for its failure in handing the clergy sex-abuse crisis. 

SETTLEMENT DEMANDED SWEEPING CHANGES

Wehmeyer and his abuse of the Hoffman brothers was at the center of the charges. The case took more than 20 months, 17,000 documents and interviews with more than 50 archdiocese stakeholders to investigate.

At the time, authorities said the Wehmeyer case was indicative of a larger and historic pattern within the archdiocese that valued protecting priests at the expense of children.

Per the terms of the settlement agreement, Choi wound up dropping the charges against the archdiocese in exchange for a public apology from Archbishop Bernard Hebda for its mistakes. Hebda was appointed to the post after Archbishop John Nienstedt resigned in the midst of the scandal.

The archdiocese had to commit to undergoe a sweeping institutional change involving an exhaustive overhaul of its child-protection policies and practices these past four years.

The archdiocese also was forced to implement a system of checks and balances, including enforced training requirements for all clergy, staff and volunteers on how to spot and report sexual abuse, as well as the creation of a new ministerial review board comprised mostly of laity — including Patty Wetterling.

It’s a seismic shift from the days when only clergy reviewed such cases, often sweeping them under the rug as accused priests were quietly shuffled to other parishes.

The archdiocese also hired staff with backgrounds in law enforcement for notable leadership roles, including Tim O’Malley, a former director of the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension who now heads up the archdiocese’s Ministerial Standards and Safe Environment Office.

It’s also made a commitment to helping survivors heal by appointing an ombudsman unaffiliated with the archdiocese to field their concerns and hired a victim outreach coordinator. It’s held regular restorative justice sessions for survivors.

HEBDA VOWS TO CONTINUE EFFORTS

Ramsey County District Judge Teresa Warner has ensured compliance of the settlement agreement by reviewing eight progress reports submitted to the court and three external audits.

Tuesday marked the day the archdiocese will continue the work on its own, without the court making sure its doing the right thing.

Hebda vowed to continue the work in his remarks at a press conference after the hearing.

“The conclusion of this period … is a time for neither celebration or relief … And this is certainly not a time to relax,” Hebda said.

He noted a report that the archdiocese submitted to the court Tuesday that outlines its plan to continue its commitment to safe environments for children in perpetuity. Among other elements, it includes continuing to bring in outside entities to conduct external audits.

His commitment is fueled by the mantra he hears from survivors to “do everything you can to make sure this doesn’t happen to another child,” he said. “I trust the … citizens of this community will hold us to our commitment.”

JUDGE, CHOI COMMEND PROGRESS

Both Choi and Judge Warner lauded the archdiocese’s efforts, saying they exceeded both the expectations of the law and the spirit of the agreement.

“Can we say no child will ever be abused again, no,” Warner said during the hearing. “What we can say … is the safeguards are in place in his archdiocese so that the protection of children is paramount before any protection of any clergy.”

Choi echoed those remarks after the hearing, giving credit to the leadership of Hebda, O’Malley and deputy director of the archdiocese’s Ministerial Standards and Safe Environment Office, Janell Rasmussen.

So long as those three remain involved, Choi said he has “great confidence” the archdiocese’s will continue its commitment to the work.

He added what others have said, that the true test of the depth of the institutional change will come about five years from now, when new leaders take over.

‘EVERYONE SAID CHILDREN ARE SAFER’

The Ramsey County Attorney’s Office conducted its own in-depth review prior to Tuesday’s hearing, consisting of interviews with dozens of archdiocesan stakeholders to assess how far the the archdiocese has come.

“Everyone said children are safer … the change has embedded,” Assistant Ramsey County Attorney Thomas Ring said of the findings. They were compiled in a report filed to the court Tuesday.

WORK, CONCERNS REMAIN 

Still, everyone who spoke during and after the hearing said plenty of work remains.

The county attorney’s report outlined weak-spots within the archdiocese, including some outdated training materials, a lingering sense among survivors that the archdiocese needs to do more to reach out to them, and a concern among some that priests should be better trained in how to respond to trauma.

Many also have expressed concern about some priests who remain in the ministry, in particular the Rev. Kevin McDonough, despite their suspected roles in helping to cover up abuses by fellow clergy.

Jennifer M. Haselberger, who served as chancellor for canonical affairs with the archdiocese from 2008 to 2013, disclosed priest sexual abuse cases and their mishandling by the archdiocese. In 2014 Haselberger authored a 107-page affidavit describing top officials’ cover-ups and a “cavalier attitude toward the safety of other people’s children.”

On Tuesday O’Malley said the archdiocese is continuing to investigate individual clergy member’s responsibility. But he said to date the focus has been on priests accused of abuse.

Others say they would like to see more leadership from the archdiocese in reminding those who wish to “move on” from the crisis.

A woman who recently attended a restorative justice event held by the county attorney’s office and the archdiocese spoke to the concern.

“I feel like there needs to be a bigger voice then mine saying that this isn’t ever going to be over for people, that this will never be done,” she said.

BEN HOFFMAN: ARCHDIOCESE IS A SAFER PLACE

However, for Ben Hoffman, the progress has been unfathomable.

When asked after Tuesday’s hearing if he believes the archdiocese is really a different and safer place, Hoffman was unequivocal.

“100 percent … it’s a night and day difference,” he said, adding that as someone closely involved in ministry, he is in a position to know.

He added that the change brings particular relief to him as a father to a young boy.

“I can walk into the church and not have to worry about him,” he said.

A jury convicted a St. Paul man of raping his girlfriend’s 4-year-old twins and giving them both a sexually transmitted disease, court records say.

Arturo Macarro Gutierrez, 36, was convicted Tuesday of four counts of criminal sexual conduct, including two in the first degree and two in the second degree, following a roughly four day trial in Ramsey County District Court. His defense attorney could not be immediately reached for comment.

Assistant Ramsey County Attorney Dawn R. Bakst, who prosecuted the case, intends to ask for a longer sentence then is called for under state sentencing guidelines given the nature of the case, according to the Ramsey County Attorney’s Office.

Gutierrez was charged in October of 2018 after one of the 4-year-old girls told her grandmother that her “daddy” hurt her, according to the criminal complaint. Gutierrez was in a relationship with the girl’s mother at the time.

The woman took the child to Children’s Hospital, where tests were run that determined the girl had gonorrhea.

Police arrested Gutierrez after a SWAT team executed a search warrant at a residence in West St. Paul and found him hiding in the attic.

He denied hurting the girl, but was charged with her sexual assault after also testing positive for gonorrhea, court records say.

He was subsequently charged with sexually assaulting the girl’s twin sister when she, too, tested positive for the sexually transmitted disease.

Ramsey County Attorney John Choi issued a statement following the verdict about these kinds of cases.

“Cases involving sexual assault of young children pose significant barriers since they do not possess the language to describe the acts, may not understand that the abuse was wrong, and are susceptible to intimidation and manipulation by the offender. This verdict is attributable to the tremendous courage of the young victims and the willingness of caring adults to believe them,” the statement read.

Gutierrez is scheduled to be sentenced April 1.

A St. Paul man is accused of physically and sexually assaulting a woman he’d just met as the two sat in her vehicle, according to criminal charges.

The woman told officers that she and a man who introduced himself as Chris Page were in her vehicle in the area of Reaney Avenue and Johnson Parkway in St. Paul last May 30. At some point the man grabbed the keys from her ignition and took her cell phone, according to a criminal complaint filed Wednesday in Ramsey County District Court.

Then he punched her in the face multiple times, causing her to lose consciousness, before forcing her into the backseat and raping her, according to the criminal charges.

Police later identified the man as President Pimpin Austin.

When the woman came to, she went to her ex-boyfriend’s home and he took her to the hospital, where she underwent a sexual assault examination.

Officers who interviewed her noted injuries to her face at the time.

Police arrested Austin, 28, about a week later. He denied knowing the victim and asked for an attorney, charges say.

He initially identified himself to officers as Chris Page, authorities say.

About a month later, the woman picked Austin out of a line-up as her attacker. A sample of his DNA also matched the DNA found on the woman, according to the complaint.

Austin was charged via warrant with one count of first-degree criminal sexual conduct.

No attorney was listed for him in court records.

Austin’s criminal history includes first-degree criminal damage to property, malicious punishment of a child under four-years-old, domestic assault and violating a no contact order.

A Maplewood man who provides space for an informal children’s religious class at an African grocery store has been charged with sexually assaulting two young children.

Police learned of the allegations after a 7-year-old told an employee at her school this past November about being inappropriately touched by a man she referred to as “Daddy Alim” while she attended classes at his store. The store is located in the 2000 block of East Minnehaha Avenue in Maplewood, according to a criminal complaint filed Monday.

The girl disclosed what happened after a teacher noticed her “crying heavily” during a discussion on class rules, one of which instructed students not to let anyone touch their private parts.

Concerned, the teacher asked the girl if she wanted to talk privately about what was causing her emotional response. That’s when the child told her that “Daddy Alim,” who police subsequently identified as Akeem Adebayo Lamina, reportedly took her into his office while she attended classes at his store and shut the door.

Then he would play “disgusting videos” on his cellphone and make her engage in conduct that he made her promise not to tell anyone about, according to criminal charges.

The girl said the conduct took place about five times and told investigators that her father is a friend of Lamina, 51.

The girl’s parents were contacted, and they informed police that their child had been attending classes at the store for about two years.

Her mother recalled an incident when she went to pick up her daughter from classes last  June and found her alone in Lamina’s office with the door closed, according to the complaint. She said Lamina abruptly placed his cellphone face-down on his desk when she entered the room.

St. Paul police received a similar report involving Lamina and another 7-year-child late last month, according to the complaint.

In that incident, the child told a teacher that Lamina had taken her into his office and exposed himself, according to the complaint.

The girl was subsequently brought to the Midwest Children’s Resource Center for an examination, which is when she disclosed details of several other incidents when Lamina sexually assaulted her, according to the complaint. She said the instances happened at both his store and home.

Investigators learned that the child’s mother is friends with Lamina’s wife and that the couple often provided child care for the girl and her two brothers at their St. Paul home, according to the criminal complaint.

Lamina was charged with one count of first-degree criminal sexual conduct as well as one count of second-degree criminal sexual conduct.

Police suspect there could be more victims, and ask anyone with information to call 651-291-1111 to file a report, according to Sgt. Mike Ernster, a police spokesman.

“Our investigators would like to speak to anyone who believes their children have come into contact with this suspect and was possibly victimized,” Ernster said.

Both Lamina and his wife are listed as owners of 2Ajibola Trading, which is described online as an African grocery store that also sells shoes, bags, jewelry, beads and other wares.

A search warrant filed in the case referred to the classes the girls attended at the store as “Saturday School.”

Lt. Daniel Busack, who oversees investigations for Maplewood police, said the classes take place Saturday afternoons and appear to be “really informal.”

“It’s basically just a network of friends and family who go there to learn Arabic and study the Koran,” he said.

He added that Lamina did not teach the classes.

He encouraged anyone with information or concerns to contact him at 651-249-2607.

Lamina is expected to make his first court appearance on the charges Tuesday. No attorney was listed for him in court records.

Mara H. Gottfried contributed to this report. 

A lawsuit filed against Minneapolis Star Tribune and Minnesota Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor accuses the billionaire of thwarting the trajectory of a White Bear Lake-based hearing-implant company that garnered celebrity endorsements and media buzz.

Taylor diverted control from shareholders so that he would be better positioned to benefit from its future, according to the lawsuit.

Former Timberwolves coach and general manager, Kevin McHale, is among the 10 plaintiffs listed in the suit. It was filed in Ramsey County District Court. McHale is a shareholder in the company.

The 36-page civil complaint alleges that the 2012 firing of Taylor’s daughter from the company — Envoy Medical Corp. — by then-president Rochelle Amann at least partially triggered Taylor’s move for control. Shortly afterward Taylor — a director of Envoy — pushed Amann, then-CEO Patrick Spearman, and the duo’s “successful marketing team” out the door, according to the lawsuit.

The terminations were notable as it was Amann and Spearman’s team that landed the endorsement of former actor and professional bodybuilder Lou Ferrigno, who touted the “miracle” potential of the company’s Esteem ear-implant technology on the season finale of NBC’s “The Apprentice.”

They also persuaded Rush Limbaugh to advertise the device on his radio show, according to the lawsuit.

It also was under their leadership that viewers across the country observed the device’s potential on a young mother born with a hearing impairment who shared her experience with Esteem on YouTube, according to the lawsuit. The video, viewed more than 27 million times, garnered the attention of major media outlets and landed the mother spots on “The Ellen Degeneres Show” and the “Today” show.

The company’s marketing success under their leadership was mirrored by strong fundraising and sales, with Envoy selling some 600 Esteem devices for $30,000 each in a two-year-span, the lawsuit said.

Neither Taylor or his attorney could be immediately reached for comment.

In a statement, CEO Bruce Lucas said:

“Envoy Medical is dedicated to improving the lives of individuals with hearing loss — and we will continue on this mission with complete focus. A small number of our investors filed a lawsuit that takes issue with some of the management decisions that the company has made. While we are disappointed that any investor would be unhappy with the operation of the business, the company stands by those decisions. The company strongly disagrees with the allegations in the Complaint, and believes that the claims are merit-less and will ultimately be dismissed.  Beyond that, the Company cannot comment on pending litigation.”

After Amann and Spearman were pushed out, Taylor rehired his daughter and created a leadership team that would be loyal to him, the suit alleges.

Then, he abandoned the company’s former marketing plan and “immediately began pushing forward a plan to freeze the company’s progress, position himself to loot its assets, and divest Envoy’s shareholders of their ownership and voting rights,” according to the lawsuit.

Perhaps most notably, Taylor engaged in “self-dealing” by becoming the sole financial backer of the company, the lawsuit said.

In exchange for his multimillion-dollar loans, the company granted Taylor the rights to convert their principal and interest into stock shares, slowly shifting more and more of the voting rights of other shareholders to Taylor, the lawsuit said.

The loan conditions were uniquely favorable to Taylor, the suit says, noting that other shareholders who had lent money to the company weren’t offered the same terms.

Envoy also reportedly “pledged all of its assets including its intellectual property” to Taylor as security for his loans.

In the seven months after the leadership change, Envoy pulled in less than $700,000 in new Esteem orders, which amounted to a tenfold drop from what the previous management team accomplished, the lawsuit said.

The downturn allowed Taylor and his new management team to portray his loans as the lifeboat that allowed the now-struggling company to stay afloat.

The biggest “betrayal” came in 2015, when Envoy’s shareholders realized Taylor had amassed 4 million preferred shares of Envoy — giving him total voting control of the company — for some $20 million, even though the company’s estimated value at the time was between $350 million and $1 billion, the lawsuit said.

Taylor and other Envoy directors’ maneuvering, which shareholders were not given the opportunity “to vote on or prevent …,” “backed Envoy and its shareholders into a corner,” the suit alleges.

“The company is not generating meaningful revenue after abandoning its previously successful strategy. It cannot effectively raise money from anyone but Taylor himself. Its loans from Taylor are structured to discourage a sale to anyone but Taylor. And if it files for bankruptcy, Taylor will receive all of its assets,” according to the lawsuit.

Taylor and other Envoy leadership’s actions, which were not in “good faith,” and failed to take into account “the best interests of Envoy,” violate common and statutory law regarding shareholder rights and corporate governance, the suit says.

In addition to McHale, other plaintiffs include former CEO Patrick Spearman, Amann and other minority shareholders.

Defendants include Taylor, various Envoy directors and Lucas, its current CEO.

A man and woman are charged with aggravated robbery after stealing from a Famous Footwear in Roseville last month and pepper-spraying the employee who confronted them about it.

Authorities say it wasn’t their first time.

The Ramsey County attorney’s office on Tuesday filed criminal complaints against Dajoun Lamarr Coleman, 24, and Brandi Simmone Jefferson, 26.

According to the charging document, the two entered the shoe store in the 2000 block of Snelling Avenue Jan. 17 and walked toward the Nike section.

Coleman reportedly grabbed two boxes of shoes and then left without paying for them, followed closely by Jefferson, who was holding pepper spray in her right hand, the complaint said.

When a 17-year-old followed behind them to confront them about the theft, Jefferson sprayed him with the chemical before she and Coleman climbed into a Chevrolet Impala and fled the scene, according to the criminal charges. The incident was caught on video.

About a week later, the investigating officer got a call from a Maple Grove investigator who said the same couple had stolen products from an Ulta cosmetics store, but noted that in his case Jefferson had sprayed several people with pepper spray despite not being confronted by anyone about the theft first, according to the complaint.

Several of those hit with pepper spray went to the hospital.

A few days later, Coleman called the investigator and admitted to stealing the shoes, but said he was so drunk at the time that he couldn’t recall who he was with at the time or what happened afterward, according to the charges.

Coleman received a departure in a different aggravated robbery case he was sentenced in this past June and given credit for the 154 days in jail he served in the case and placed on probation for four years, according to the complaint.

Jefferson has three prior felony theft convictions.

Both Jefferson and Coleman were charged via warrant. No attorney was listed for them in court records.

A St. Paul police officer badly injured by an assailant during an arrest last summer said she had a message for the public after leaving the man’s sentencing hearing Tuesday.

“I just think it’s important the public know that things are changing and more officers are being assaulted,” Shannon Diedrich said.

When asked what she believes is the cause, Diedrich cited lighter sentences for offenders who she believes get sent back into the community too early, and the “negative atmosphere” police work in these days.

However, Diedrich said she was pleased with the sentence Ramsey County District Judge Judith Tilsen gave to the man who hurt her last August.

Tilsen sentenced Julius Tasha, 32, to three years of probation on one felony count of fourth-degree assault that resulted in demonstrable bodily harm to the officer. He also served 99 days in jail.

His attorney, Jenna Campion, had argued for her client be sentenced at a gross-misdemeanor level because he never intended to hurt Diedrich and struggles with mental health issues.

“My client still believes he is an FBI agent,” Campion told the judge. She added that he also recently believed he was being inhabited by an alien.

“The conduct in this case is significantly different then someone who just walks up to an officer and punches her,” Campion said. “The resulting harm, the level of harm, was not intended.

Tasha, who was homeless at the time, had stolen food from a Speedway in downtown St. Paul’s Lowertown area when Diedrich, who was working off-duty at the convenience store, grabbed his shirt and told him to put them back.

Instead, Tasha punched her repeatedly in the face and ran.

Diedrich pursued him, and they wrestled on the ground. He later bit another officer who was trying to take him into custody.

Diedrich was left with marks on her face, arm, hand and knee, and was taken to Regions Hospital for treatment.

She told the court Tuesday that the incident left her with a traumatic brain injury that rendered for unable to get out of bed for a time. It kept her out of work for three months, which added considerable stress for her and her wife as she is the primary breadwinner of  their family.

She now lives with chronic pain, vision problems, and finds herself stuttering and unable to think as clearly as she once could.

“My brain will never be the same,” she said, adding that “not being able to care for your family makes you feel weak and vulnerable.”

She has since returned to full-time work for the police department.

“I love my job, but this has affected the way I do my job,” she said.

Tasha apologized for what he did when he got a chance to speak.

“What I did was very wrong,” he said, adding that police should be treated with respect.

“That is what we have out there, is police, that’s all we got,” he said.

Deidrich said after the hearing that she was glad Tilsen wasn’t swayed by the defense’s attempt to secure a shorter probation period of Tasha.

“I am glad he got the felony,” she said. “I think my statement made a difference.”

A sergeant with the Ramsey County sheriff’s office was convicted of misconduct of a public officer this week and subsequently resigned from his post in law enforcement, his defense attorney said.

Jason Degerstrom, 45, pleaded guilty to the misdemeanor count in Ramsey County District Court Monday, and was sentenced to nine months of probation to the court, according to court records.

Two misdemeanor theft counts against Degerstrom were dismissed, according his attorney, Deborah Ellis.

As part of his plea, Degerstrom admitted to mishandling the personal property of a homeowner when he was executing a search warrant at a Payne-Phalen home last March, Ellis said.

He denied stealing it though, as authorities alleged in the probable cause statement of the criminal complaint.

The charging document said a motion-activated surveillance camera in a bedroom in the 600 block of Geranium Street caught Degerstrom stuffing a phone charger into his pocket while executing a search warrant at the home.

It also reportedly caught him fumbling through a purse before stuffing what authorities suspect was cash into his pocket, the document said.

A resident of the house said she had about $1,000 in cash in the purse. Only about $500 remained when county staff took inventory following the search.

Ellis said Degerstrom served about 20 years in law enforcement.

Before entering his plea this week, Degerstrom, a veteran, participated in Ramsey County’s veterans court, Ellis said, adding that the experience was meaningful for him.

The Ramsey County sheriff’s office didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment about the case.

The office placed him on leave last April after learning about the allegations.

“It’s very regretful and his career in law enforcement is over,” Ellis said.

A man who was walking in St. Paul’s Merriam Park neighborhood  Saturday night was jumped by three men who repeatedly punched him and flashed a handgun, according to criminal charges.

The incident took place near 500 North Prior Avenue  just after the man exited his vehicle and was walking to a location in the area, according to criminal complaints filed in Ramsey County District Court this week.

He told police that three man approached him and told him that he had something that belonged to them, according to the charges.

When the man said he didn’t know what they were talking about, they reportedly started punching him. The man said he fought back until one of his attackers flashed a handgun, according to the charges.

Then they took the man’s wallet and left in a red Chevrolet Impala, but not before the man was able to note the vehicle’s license plate, according to the charges.

Minneapolis police spotted the vehicle later that evening and pulled it over.

Ahmed Farah Roble, 26, Khadar Abdi Isse, 26, and Walid Abdirahman Mohamud, 23, were inside, according to court documents.

The man who reported being robbed identified Roble as the individual who took his wallet, Isse as the assailant who repeatedly punched him, and Mohamud as the man who flashed the gun, charges say.

Police later found a Colt .380-caliber handgun on the floorboard in the squad where Mohamud had been sitting following his arrest, the complaint said. Mohamud also reportedly had the man’s driver’s license and medical cards on him.

Roble spoke to officers about the allegations, saying he, Isse and Mohamud had been at a music store near the crime scene earlier that evening, adding that Isse got into an argument with a man over music, the complaint said.

However, he reportedly denied assaulting anyone or seeing anyone possess a gun.

Isse and Mohamud declined to make statements to police.

The three men are each charged with one count of first-degree aggravated robbery.

They made their court first appearance on the charges Tuesday morning. No attorney was listed for them in court records.

A St. Paul man accused of sexually assaulting an intoxicated woman he met outside a Minneapolis bar in the late fall of 2018 was sentenced to 10 years of probation this week.

Ramsey County District Judge Judith Tilsen placed several conditions on Tyreese Harris’ probation, including ordering him to complete treatment and stay off the internet unless granted permission by his probation officer. He also is forbidden from accessing pornographic materials or visiting strip clubs or adult bookstores, according to court records.

Additionally, Harris has to register as a predatory offender for the rest of his life.

If Harris fails to live up to the terms, he faces 7½ years in prison.

The sentence comes about two months after Harris, 43, pleaded guilty to one count of fourth-degree criminal sexual conduct. Two counts of first-degree criminal sexual assault previously facing him in the case were dismissed at his sentencing per the terms of a plea deal reached with the state.

Harris was charged after a 23-year-old woman who got separated from her friend outside a Minneapolis bar after a night of heavy drinking in November 2018 woke up in his bed without her clothes on, according to the criminal complaint.

The woman didn’t know Harris and couldn’t recall how she got there.

Her friend told police that she lost her friend while going to flag down an Uber outside the 508 Club in Minneapolis.

The woman, who woke up in Harris’ bed, asked him how she got there. He said they met outside the bar and that his friend dropped them off at his place because he was too drunk to drive.

When she asked if they had sex, Harris told her no, according to the complaint.

After she found her clothes, Harris gave her a ride back to her home in Minneapolis, where she found police taking a missing person’s report on her, legal documents say.

The woman was taken to Hennepin County Medical Center for a sexual assault examination in which staff found bruises on her arm “consistent with someone holding or grabbing her,” red raised bumps on her hairline “consistent with her hair being pulled,” and injuries “consistent with strangulation and/or forced penetration,” the complaint said.

The woman also had injuries to her genitals and complained of neck pain.

Harris agreed to give police a DNA sample, which matched the evidence taken from the young woman during her sexual assault exam.

Harris’ defense attorney, Evan Tsai, issued the following comment about the outcome Tuesday morning:

“Mr. Harris expressed both shame and remorse for the harm he committed to the complaining witness. He is actively taking steps to address his mental and chemical health, all while navigating the obstacles posed by the unfortunate circumstances of his life and his history with the criminal justice system. The sentence he received was a result of a plea agreement and a finding of a particular amenability towards being rehabilitated. The court made that specific finding.”

Prosecutors were partially motivated to reach a deal after learning that the nurse who conducted the sexual assault exam in the case was recently fired from the Hennepin County Medical Center for lying about her credentials, according to the Ramsey County attorney’s office.

Kristi Jarvis also worked for a brief time at Regions Hospital.

Her termination calls into question the integrity of the cases she was involved in examining during her career, the county attorney’s office reported.

In addition to Harris’ case, the Ramsey County attorney’s office is reviewing 12 other cases that Jarvis had handled.

A few days before Christmas, a 61-year-old woman got into her vehicle behind her apartment building in St. Paul’s Summit-University neighborhood and noticed a young man get out of a nearby blue sedan and start running toward her.

She quickly put her vehicle in reverse, but the man made it to her driver’s side window before she could get away.

He pulled out a silver handgun with a long barrel and pointed it at her, then demanded her wallet.

The woman handed over her purse, which contained her walled and iPhone, and the man took off.

That’s the account outlined in a criminal complaint filed in Ramsey County District Court against 18-year-old Marcus Cortez Funches. Funches was charged Thursday with one count of first-degree aggravated robbery.

He was arrested after officers executing a search warrant at his home on an unrelated matter found the fob to the blue sedan in Funches bedroom, which authorities had previously determined stolen, court documents say.

They also found a yellow North face jacket in the living room, the same jacket that a young male was seen wearing on Target’s surveillance video attempting to buy two $500 gift cards following the armed robbery, court records say.

The purchaser tried to use the woman’s stolen credit cards to pay for the transaction but the purchase was declined and the woman’s bank notified her, the criminal complaint said.

The woman told police that the male who robbed her was wearing a yellow jacket and dark pants.

Funches was arrested earlier this week.

He declined to make a statement to police, the complaint said.

Funches is expected to make his first court appearance on the charge Friday morning. No attorney was listed for him in court records.

Gov. Tim Walz is seeking candidates to fill an upcoming vacancy on the Minnesota Supreme Court, according to an announcement issued by his office Thursday.

The seat will open following the retirement of Justice David L. Lillehaug, whose last day will be July 31, 2020.

Walz issued the following statement about Lillehaug’s service to the high court.

“We are grateful for his brilliant legal mind and his deep sense of compassion during his tenure on the bench, and I wish him the best in retirement. I look forward to reviewing the applications of accomplished lawyers and judges from across the state to become our next associate justice.”

The application for his spot is now open, and Walz encouraged lawyers and judges from across the state to apply for it, his office reported.

Carl Dennis, associate director of appointments, will be distributing applications to interested parties.

He can be reached via email at Carl.Dennis@state.mn.us or via phone at (651) 201-3433. A cover letter and resume should also be submitted with the application.

Application materials, which should be addressed to Gov. Tim Walz, are due by close of business on Friday, March 20, 2020.

Two former owners of a Maplewood funeral home are accused of misappropriating money paid to them by customers attempting to prepay funeral expenses and using the funds to pay for business expenses.

David John Thorsell, 70, and Edward Peter Vasey, 69, were charged Friday with two counts of insurance fraud and a third count of theft by swindle, according to criminal complaints filed in Ramsey County District Court.

The men, who were licensed morticians, previously owned Maple Oaks Funeral Home in Maplewood.

They sold the business in 2017 after a period of financial distress. Some of their real estate was in foreclosure at the time, for example, according to the criminal charges, and the business was subject to a tax lien.

In September of that year, the Minnesota Department of Health received a complaint that Thorsell misappropriated prepaid burial funds.

State law protects such funds by requiring funeral homes to place the money in a trust or use it to buy an insurance policy for the buyer.

Investigators determined Thorsell and Vasey didn’t follow through, according to the criminal charges.

Seven times between 1997 and February of 2017, the owners took customers’ prepaid burial service funds and issued them applications for insurance, but never took the next step of actually purchasing insurance policies for the customers, according to the criminal charges.

In total, the misappropriated funds totaled about $44,000.

Among the people impacted was a woman who prepaid $10,000 to Maple Oaks Funeral Home for her funeral services and died Sept. 21, 2017, the complaint said. Since no insurance policy was obtained with her money, no funds were available to pay for her funeral when she died. Instead, the new owner had to pay for the services, along with the woman’s estate, according to the criminal complaint.

Vasey was interviewed about the matter last May and reportedly blamed Thorsell for any misappropriated funds. Thorsell reportedly acknowledged the misconduct, saying both he and Vasey were responsible, according to the criminal charges. He said they used the money to pay for the struggling funeral home’s operating expenses.

The men lost their license to practice mortuary science following the investigations.

No attorney was listed for Vasey nor Thorsell in court records. They are scheduled to make their next court appearance in March.