One is not granted immunity from prosecution if there is nothing for which they can be prosecuted.

So… the granting of immunity to Mr. Roder means that Goodhue County has granted him immunity in exchange for something they want; i.e. a conviction. of the case they are prosecuting.

Immunity does not mean innocence; it means an escape from something for which there are likely to be serious ramifications, if prosecuted.

The judge presiding over the ethics case against former Mayor Lee Lansing has denied a defense request that would have had prosecutors digging up a former city administrator’s old employment records.

In a June 22 order, Steele County Judge Joseph A. Bueltel found that Lansing’s attorney offered no evidence that personnel records from the one-time administrator and prosecution witness, Al Roder, would benefit the defense.

I remember the News starting a signup of people interested in providing news to them. Maybe these folks are on it?

I’m still wondering who reported for her since she was NOT there and no one else from the News was either.
Since it was neither Victor nor I, the only other possibilities were Jon Denison, Ms Denison/Jon’s mother, and Helen Medin. There was no one else in the courtroom but the principal parties and the five audience.

http://kymnradio.net/2011/05/31/law-review-lansing-omnibus-hearing/

The City Attorney at the time was Maren Swanson, but Roger Knutson was brought in to help with the severance agreement as I also recall, and of course an Attorney Greene (can’t remember his first name) was brought in to help with the complaint against Lansing, along with Wm. Everett, he of the ‘report’.

http://northfieldnews.com/content/mayor-charged-following-goodhue-investigation

Interestingly, this started with an investigation by former Police Chief Gary Smith of Roder. It couldn’t be investigated in Rice County because of conflicts of interest. Goodhue County took the case and changed the focus to Lansing and charged him, not Roder. I don’t see how the Northfield City Council could undo actions taken by another county. But, of course, I’m just guessing.

Kiffi, it is my understanding that there is no dollar limit and no time limit on Roder’s free attorney’s fees in this matter. KYMN’s Law Review covered this last week, but I don’t see that that particular show is archived on the KYMN site. Hvistendahl, predictibly, was scathing in his assessment of the free attorney aggreement--and the agreement to give Roder a bonus if he is not charged with a crime. If I recall correctly, HVI didn’t discuss the idea of undoing that aggreement.

Kiffi, who was the Northfield City attorney who approved the agreement that gave Roder the endless unlimited, free ride?

I can’t find the complaint anymore. If there are Northfield city ordinance violations, then the City Council should have authority to stop the prosecution.

SO… is there anything this current council could do to at least reverse some of the $$$ continually exiting the NF taxpayers pocket as we continue to pay for Mr. Roder’s legal fees?
(Mr. Roder is represented by David Lillehaug; reputed to be one of the most expensive attorneys in the state at $500 an hour.)

Also, wouldn’t you think the Goodhue county residents would be ‘up in arms’ about the time spent on this by their County prosecutor and his Assistant/co-prosecutor? There are no actual dollars be paid (the counties have reciprocity with each other) but how much time over the last two and a half years have the Goodhue staff NOT been able to spend on their own county’s business?

Got any opinion on the current Council’s possible role in this, David?

And we ARE all involved, every Northfield area resident who stood by and let certain members of Northfield Council take us down this long, expensive path. It has taken a toll on us all.

As I noted, there was no NFNews reporter there, there was no attribution to another source( which from those in attendance could only have been Jon Denison, or his mother, Mrs Denison, or Helen Medin, and there was seemingly very little chance of obtaining a transcript of the full day’s proceedings, as the bailiff was locking the building with the exit of those who had been in the courtroom and the employees.

Don’t you think the source of the reporting, and the necessary attribution of material reported on, but not witnessed, is important?

I also wondered how they did what was the best reporting done this week, as a matter of fact a rather comprehensive report considering the many new elements in Friday’s portion of this hearing.

Arranged to buy a transcript? very expensive…
One of those five persons observing/reporting? It certainly wasn’t me, and I’m pretty sure it wasn’t Victor…

Audio recording in the courtroom by someone who was there? sounds a bit far fetched and I would think not be legal?

I have no idea; maybe it was Claude Raines, if anyone is old enough to remember that movie…

Maybe you should ask the NFNews?

Lansing hearing: Following the money trail

A litany of questions from Lee Lansing’s defense counsel about the one-time city administrator’s personnel records have postponed the former mayor’s probable cause hearing in the ethics case against him by at least six weeks.

District Court Judge Joseph A. Bueltel Friday asked both sides to submit written arguments regarding documents from the city of Norfolk, Neb., by June 10.

The News was not there today, as the conclusion was reached by the Judge that both Mr. Norby and Mr. Roder will have to be back with more testimony; and indeed in Mr. Roder’s case, more documents, which he has been holding from his time in Northfield.

The ethics trial of Lee Lansing picked up Thursday in Steele County District Court with the former Northfield mayor back on the stand, discussing his repeated efforts to make his interests in two downtown properties known…

Former Northfield City Administrator Al Roder, who took the stand late in the day Thursday, characterized his relationship with the former mayor as particularly stormy and said that six months into his tenure Lansing suggested Roder resign because the administrator failed to deliver the liquor store project on David Lansing¹s property.

Roder later said Lansing threatened the administrator’s job several times during his more than two-year tenure when Roder wouldn’t bend to Lansing’s will.