Day one in the burglary trial of state Sen. Nicole Mitchell, DFL-Woodbury, featured dramatic police body cam video along with testimony from several law enforcement officers and Mitchell’s stepmother.
Opening statements were relatively brief Tuesday morning, but attorneys on both sides provided a clearer understanding of the cases they plan to present this week.
The prosecution said this is a cut-and-dried case of burglary and that Nicole Mitchell went to her stepmother Carol Mitchell’s house on April 22, 2024, with one purpose: “To steal.”
“She admitted to entering through a back window,” said Becker County Attorney Brian McDonald. “She admitted to wanting to take items from the home. She said this not once. Not twice. But multiple times.”
The prosecution presented evidence that Nicole Mitchell used a crowbar to break into her stepmother’s house in Detroit Lakes.
Nicole Mitchell has stated that this was all a misunderstanding and that she went to the home to retrieve her late father’s belongings and check on her stepmother, who suffers from Alzheimer’s. She told police that she’s had “sleepless” nights worrying about mementoes she wants that belonged to her late father and about her stepmother’s condition.
“Ladies and gentlemen, when the judge instructs you on the law at the end of this case, you’ll learn that any ‘why’ won’t amount to a legal excuse. That is because no amount of grief or frustration can justify a home burglary,” McDonald said.
Defense attorney Bruce Ringstrom Jr. emphasized that while Nicole Mitchell did enter the house last spring without permission, she did not intend to steal; rather, she was trying to check on her stepmom.
Ringstrom claimed Carol Mitchell’s health was rapidly declining and that his client actually made it a point to go to her house when it was dark, to park on a side street, to wear dark clothing and to be quiet — all for a greater good.
“When you’re checking on a paranoid loved one, hoping they don’t notice, you take great pains to be unnoticed,” Ringstrom said, adding, “Unless the state’s evidence can rule out that Nicole Mitchell entered (the house) just to check on Carol Mitchell, then the verdict must be not guilty.”
After opening statements, prosecutors began presenting body camera footage from the night of the alleged break-in, which shows the moments officers found Nicole Mitchell in her stepmother’s basement.
Body camera footage presented at trial shows Nicole Mitchell raising her hands as police discover her in the basement of her stepmother’s Detroit Lakes home on April 22, 2024.
Nicole Mitchell is seen dressed all in black with a flashlight in her waistband. As officers place her in handcuffs, she tries to explain to her stepmother why she’s in the home.
“Carol? It’s Nicole,” Nicole Mitchell says.
“It’s Nicole?” her stepmother replies.
“I was just trying to get a couple of my dad’s things because you wouldn’t talk to me anymore,” Nicole Mitchell says.
“She stole documents. I don’t know. She’s my stepdaughter,” Carol Mitchell tells the officers.
“I didn’t steal any documents!” Nicole Mitchell pleads.
After showing the body camera footage, the prosecution called Detroit Lakes Police Officer Joe Sternhagen to the stand to answer questions about the evidence processed at the scene.
Carol Mitchell was brought forward to testify next. She declined to have her testimony broadcast on a news feed of the trial. A reporter from one of our affiliates says she appeared confused on the stand and couldn’t remember some details.
Nicole Mitchell is charged with first-degree burglary and possession of burglary or theft tools. It remains unclear whether she plans to testify in her defense.
If she does, prosecutors will certainly ask her about a statement she made to police after she was read her Miranda rights. “I know I did something bad,” Mitchell said after her early morning arrest.
The prosecution plans to make it a centerpiece of their case. “I know I did something bad,” McDonald said, quoting Mitchell. “Those were some of the many words of Sen. Nicole Mitchell in the early morning hours of April 22, 2024, when detained by law enforcement.”
It’s been a 15-month road to get to the trial. It was delayed twice — once due to the assassination of House Speaker Emerita Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark, and once due to the legislative session. Mitchell’s attorneys have also tried, unsuccessfully, to get the case itself and one of the charges thrown out.
The trial is expected to last around a week, with testimony resuming at 9 a.m. Wednesday.
Stay with 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS for trial coverage on air and online. See extended clips from the trial on the 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS YouTube page.
CLICK HERE for more coverage on the case.
Source link
