Minnesota Now

The ICE agent who allegedly shot and wounded a man in Minneapolis in January was booked in jail in Minnesota after a legal fight to get him in custody. He made his first appearance in state court Thursday. We got all the latest details on that case.Ahead of November’s midterm elections, leaders that supported Minnesotans during the surge this winter say they’re now building on their goal of protecting democracy.Plus, community leaders are considering options for a long-term memorial to Alex Pretti.We also heard from Minnesota’s champion skier Jessie Diggins about her grueling 100-mile trail run on the North Shore.And this weekend, thousands of inline skaters will be along the North Shore to skate a marathon.The Minnesota Music Minute was “2sday” by Rabeca. The Song of the Day was “Free” by Jillian Rae.

Minnesota is home to many inventions, including the rollerblade! It may come as no surprise in a state with so many skaters, skiers and hockey players. Well, this weekend, thousands of rollerblades will hit Highway 61 for the longest point-to-point inline skating marathon in the world. The race stretches from Two Harbors to Duluth. This Saturday, the NorthShore Inline Marathon will also celebrate 30 years.Joe Haggenmiller helps organize the event and Greg Ash is a longtime board member who has skated every previous marathon. They both joined Minnesota Now to talk more about the event and the milestone.

After federal agents shot and killed Minneapolis nurse Alex Pretti in January, people flocked to the site of his death, near Nicollet Avenue and 26th Street in south Minneapolis, to lay flowers, notes and candles. Jadah Green lives nearby and has been taking care of the makeshift memorial since the beginning. Now, she and the neighborhood group called Whittier Alliance are calling on their neighbors to help plan for a more permanent memorial for Alex Pretti. She shared more with Minnesota Now host Nina Moini.

Early voting for the November midterms begins Friday. And ahead of this year’s elections, a Minnesota organization has been working behind the scenes to build out what they’re calling a “democracy protection initiative.” The effort evolves out of the response to this winter’s surge of federal agents. COPAL, an organization centered on supporting Latino communities across the state, launched the Immigrant Defense Network, or IDN, last year. IDN trained some 30,000 constitutional observers to document and record interactions between ICE and Minnesotans during the surge. Now, they’re leveraging the learnings to train “democracy protectors.”Francisco Segovia, executive director of COPAL, shared more about the initiative on Minnesota Now.

On Thursday, the ICE agent who shot and wounded a man in Minneapolis in January will make his first appearance in state court. The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension took Christian Castro into custody Wednesday. He also faces federal charges for allegedly lying about the circumstances that surrounded the shooting of Julio Sosa-Celis. Reporter Matt Sepic joined Minnesota Now with the latest.