Jury seated in home burglary trial of Minnesota Sen. Nicole Mitchell
The jury is now seated in the trial of a Democratic Minnesota state senator accused of burglarizing her stepmother's Detroit Lakes home.
Sen. Nicole Mitchell is facing charges of felony first-degree burglary and possession of burglary or theft tools for the alleged break-in on April 22, 2024.
Proceedings started Monday morning. According to CBS affiliate KVLY in Fargo, Minnesota, a group of 80 people were considered, with 12 — plus three alternates — seated late Monday afternoon.
The jury consists of 10 men and five women, according to the Fargo affiliate.
Opening statements begin at 9 a.m. Tuesday, with the first witness expected to take the stand a half-hour later.
Mitchell's trial was set to start on Jan. 27, but she successfully petitioned to delay proceedings until after the legislative session on June 16. Her trial was then delayed following the shootings of two Minnesota lawmakers and their spouses.
In late May, Mitchell's legal team asked the judge to dismiss the burglary tool charge, which she was charged with via an amended complaint in February, claiming the prosecution's move to add the tool charge soon after the trial's delay was retaliatory in nature and violated her right to due process.
According to the criminal complaint, Mitchell's stepmother called 911 to report the burglary, and Detroit Lakes police arrived to see Mitchell fleeing to the basement.
Mitchell, who police say was dressed in black, allegedly told police she had entered the home to retrieve personal items connected to her recently deceased father after her stepmother cut off contact with her and other family members.
Charges say officers found a backpack with two laptops inside, a cellphone, Tupperware, items identifying Mitchell and a sock-covered flashlight.
"Clearly I'm not good at this," Mitchell allegedly told officers, according to court documents. "I know I did something bad."
Mitchell pleaded not guilty and issued a statement following the arrest that she was helping a loved one with Alzheimer's.
Since she was first charged last year, Mitchell, a former TV meteorologist and Air National Guard commander, has survived multiple attempts by her Republican Senate colleagues to expel her from the Capitol.
The Senate DFL Caucus, however, expelled Mitchell from her committee assignments and caucus meetings days after her arrest.
Criminal defense attorney Joe Tamburino, who is not involved in Mitchell's trial, said "it's going to be very difficult [for her] to win."
"Let's face it, according to what's in the complaint and what we imagine the prosecutor will prove at trial, is that she was found in the house at the very early morning hours, she was dressed in black and she was discovered by her stepmother and then supposedly she ran down to the basement, and then when the police got there, she made a number of incriminating statements," Tamburino said.
Tamburino said, if he were representing Mitchell, he would have tried to resolve the case before trial, possibly by pleading guilty to a lesser charge. It's possible, he said, going to trial was a political decision, not a legal one.
"When the defense attorney said that they're basically going to trial because they think this will resonate to the jury, OK, you're not really saying a defense there, so are you going to trial for political reasons, which means you don't want to lose a seat in the legislature," Tamburino said. "And if that's the case, that's an unfortunate decision. Because trials shouldn't be about politics. Trials should be about you get your day in court."
He added the impact of Mitchell's status as a public official will really depend on each individual juror.
Twin Cities attorney Mike Bryant said he expects the longest part of the trial to be jury selection. If a jury can be picked in time, he expects the trial should wrap by the end of the week. Bryant also said he feels Mitchell will have to testify.
"Unless the state has a really super weak case that they can't prove anything, I think it's going to be one of those situations where the jury's going to want to hear from her," said Bryant.
WCCO will offer special, extended coverage of Mitchell's trial online and on CBS News Minnesota.