The Minnesota state senator and Air Force vet accused of burglary has been stripped of committee assignments.
On Sunday morning, Minnesota Senator Erin Murphy announced that 49-year-old Democrat Nicole Mitchell “will be relieved of her committee duties and removed from caucus meetings.”
Mitchell, who also worked as a meteorologist, allegedly broke into her stepmother’s home on April 22 in an attempt to retrieve her late father’s belongings.
She was charged with first-degree burglary, a misdemeanor, and released on the condition she not contact her stepmother. Mitchell has denied breaking into the house and ignored calls for her resignation.
Murphy called Mitchell’s situation “tragic” and revealed that the matter has been referred to the Senate Ethics Subcommittee.
Minnesota State Senator Nicole Mitchell, 49, was stripped of committee assignments Sunday morning after being charged with one count of first-degree burglary, a misdemeanor
Minnesota Senator Erin Murphy called Mitchell’s situation “tragic” and revealed that the matter has been referred to the Senate Subcommittee on Ethics.
Mitchell allegedly broke into her stepmother’s home on April 22 in an attempt to retrieve her late father’s belongings
The day after the alleged burglary, state lawmakers called on Mitchell to resign.
“This behavior is unbecoming of a member of the Legislature and she should immediately resign from the Senate,” Senate Minority Leader Mark Johnson said in a statement Tuesday.
Mitchel has said that at the time of the alleged incident, she was trying to retrieve some items that belonged to her late father, Rod, who died in March 2023.
The suspect then accused her stepmother of no longer talking to her about her father’s assets. In a statement, Mitchell said her stepmother suffers from Alzheimer’s disease.
On Wednesday, a judge granted Mitchell a restraining order when she appeared in court over Zoom.
Police said Mitchell admitted to leaving her Woodbury home at 1 a.m. because she planned to drive to Detroit Lakes, where her late father lived with her stepmother.
She told authorities she went there to pick up a flannel shirt, ashes, photos and other sentimental items.
Mitchell’s attorney, Bruce Ringstrom Sr., said in an interview that the dispute stemmed from a “fractured relationship” between the senator and her stepmother, which was exacerbated by age-related issues.
“It’s not exactly the wicked stepmother from Cinderella,” Ringstrom said.
Ringstrom said he is certain there will be “internal discussions” among Senate Democrats about her future, but that she is entitled to a presumption of innocence.
He said he told her to suppress her instincts “as a media person, a weather person and a politician,” and that she agreed to “shut her mouth and not say anything.”
Nicole Mitchell pictured with her father, Rod, in a photo posted to Facebook in 2011. Rod Mitchell passed away in March 2023
She told authorities that she went to her late father’s home, which he shared with her stepmother, to pick up a flannel shirt, ashes, photos and other sentimental items. (photo: Mitchell speaks to the Senate)
Mitchell, who was also a former radio and TV meteorologist, has denied the allegations but did not explain why she entered the house without permission in the middle of the night.
But in a post on Facebook, Mitchell later denied the theft. However, she did not explain why she entered the house without permission in the middle of the night.
“Like many families, mine is dealing with the pain of watching a loved one decline due to Alzheimer’s disease and the paranoia that comes with it. … This has been a real tragedy for our family and I hope it can become a private matter again,” Mitchell wrote.
Her father died in March 2023 at the age of 72, according to his obituary. He was married to Mitchell’s stepmother for forty years.
“I know I did something bad,” the complaint quoted Mitchell as saying.
Mitchell was dressed in all black and wearing a black hat when she was arrested, the complaint said. The officer said he discovered a flashlight on her that was covered by a black sock, apparently modified to control the amount of light coming out.
The lawmaker acknowledged entering through a basement window that was propped open while wearing a black backpack, the complaint said.
Agents found her Senate ID in it. She claimed her stepmother gave her a laptop she found in her backpack “a long time ago,” but the stepmother disputed that. The senator, who studied law, also indicated that she was caught shortly after entering.
“Obviously I’m not good at this,” she said, according to the complaint.
The stepmother said in an interview that she is afraid of her stepdaughter. She also said that even though most of her husband’s ashes were buried, she sent Mitchell a miniature container with some of them.
However, Ringstrom said this account is “not entirely accurate.”
Mitchell served as a meteorologist for the U.S. Army, KSTP-TV, Minnesota Public Radio and The Weather Channel before being elected in 2022 from suburban St. Paul.
Mitchell represents the 47th District and 85,000 residents. Her district includes the town of Woodbury, outside St. Paul.
During her time in the Senate, Mitchell has worked on policies related to veterans, child protection and climate change.
She also helped introduce a bill calling for criminal penalties for those who fail to meet safe firearms storage standards, while also co-authoring a bill proposing to move incarcerated people in the state from prisons to their last reported address.
On her campaign page, Mitchell noted that for an end-of-session party in 2023, she planned to hold a fundraiser to continue working on “reproductive rights, climate change, voting rights, gun safety, trans rights and addressing hunger in Minnesota.” ‘
Mitchell was born in Fargo and raised in Minnesota, with her family moving to Woodbury in 1986, according to her official biography.
She was editor-in-chief of her high school newspaper and was voted Woodbury Days Princess.
She received her bachelor’s degree from the University of Minnesota and worked as an assignment manager for a TV station in Duluth. (photo: Mitchell casts his vote early in September 2022)
During her time in the military, she served as a meteorologist for the Air Force’s “Hurricane Hunters,” which fly planes into storms to gather details before they hit America.
She joined the Army after high school and worked for the Air National Guard as a weather observer and then a forecaster.
During her time in the military, she served as a meteorologist for the Air Force’s “Hurricane Hunters,” which fly planes into storms to gather details before they hit America.
She flew in Hurricanes Charley, Katrina, Wilma and Harvey.
“As a respected communicator, military member and scholar, Nicole is often personally sought out for speaking engagements and involvement in the military community,” her biography reads.
She received her bachelor’s degree from the University of Minnesota and worked as an assignment manager for a TV station in Duluth. Later she started doing TV again.
Mitchell worked as a TV meteorologist in Rapid City, South Dakota, South Bend, Indiana and Tulsa, Oklahoma.
The Air Force vet moved back to Minnesota in 2016 to raise her family (her son is now five) and worked as a TV and radio meteorologist before running for office.
Mitchell obtained her foster care license in 2018 and cared for six children in full-time care, including three with special needs.
Mitchell’s next court appearance is scheduled for June 10.