Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison has requested, and has been granted permission from Governor Walz, to take over the prosecution of the murder of Zaria McKeever.
Two teenagers and an adult are charged in the case.
The family of the 23-year old Brooklyn Park woman, who was shot to death in her apartment last fall, was outraged that Hennepin County attorney Mary Moriarty wanted to charge the teens in juvenile court and not as adults.
There was also criticism from law enforcement and the attorney general himself.
In a statement, Moriarty said having Ellison take over the case is an unprecedented move, and that doing so because he disagrees with her choice is deeply troubling and should alarm prosecutors across the state.
In a statement, Ellison says he first requested that Moriarity's office refer the case to the attorney general's office, but they declined to do so.
He acknowledges that the governor's power to assign cases to the attorney general should be used sparingly and he does not expect to make a request like this again.