Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison announced on Tuesday that his office would be pursuing legal action against Merwin Liquors and Winner Gas Station over unlawful and dangerous public nuisances.
Ellison shared in a press release that his office, in cooperation with the Hennepin County Attorney and the Minneapolis City Attorney, has provided the two properties official notices that "unlawful public nuisance activity is occurring" on their properties.
The activity was confirmed through an investigation, and Ellison shared that if the properties do not abate the nuisance conduct or reach an agreement with the three offices within 30 days, a complaint for relief will be filed in district court.
There have been 14 instances at Merwin Liquors and 22 at Winner Gas Station of people firing guns, people injured, weapons possession, and drug dealing and possession in 2022, according to the release.
Among the instances were three large-scale shootings in September 2022.
Ellison says that the properties themselves are not in good condition, which could be leading to the actions taking place there.
"If you go up there, there's a fence that's all bent over to the side and is not in good repair," Ellison said. "Often there's garbage, and it does not look like a place that anyone cares about."
Ellison shared in his release that his office is working to create a safe community, but he called on the community to also do their part.
"Creating safe communities means using all the civil and criminal tools of the law to keep people safe from violence, and it means creating stable housing, good schools, healthy environments, and a fair economy where everyone can get ahead," Ellison said. "And it takes all of us working together to make that happen."
Ellison said he looks forward to working with the businesses to abate the conditions "so neighbors can thrive and feel safe wherever they go, as everyone in every neighborhood has a right to."
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