Opening statements begin at 9:00 a.m. Tuesday morning in Detroit Lakes, Minnesota in the felony burglary trial of Democratic State Senator Nicole Mitchell (Woodbury).
Twin Cities defense attorney Paul Applebaum is offering his thoughts on the felony burglary case against Mitchell after jury selection wrapped up. Applebaum telling WCCO's Chad Hartman that it's going to be a tough case for Mitchell as the complaint states that she drove from Woodbury to her stepmother's home in the early morning hours of April 22, 2024 wearing all black and broke in the home after her father passed.
"I can't believe this is going to trial, I really can't," Applebaum said. "Given that she has no moves to make."
Mitchell, who has pleaded not guilty, says she was there to retrieve some of his belongings, and that the stepmother has Alzheimer's. Mitchell has been claiming her stepmother had refused to talk to her or other family members.
In Tuesday morning's opening statements, defense attorney Bruce Ringstrom says she wasn't trying to steal anything.
"We're not disputing that Nicole entered without consent," he explained to the jury. "She did. There are two possibilities. Nicole entered to steal something. Nicole Mitchell entered to check on Carol. Unless the state's evidence can rule out that Nicole Mitchell entered just to check on Carol Mitchell, then the verdict must be not guilty."
But Becker County prosecutor Brian McDonald noted that Mitchell was confronted by police and admitted to committing a crime.
"I know I did something bad. Those were some of the many words of Senator Nicole Mitchell in the early morning hours of April 22, 2024 when detained by law enforcement," McDonald said in his opening statement. "I ask that you specifically remember those words throughout this trial.".
Applebaum says if she were his client, his advice would be simple.
"I would have just said 'an apology' in this case is your best defense," says Applebaum who says the case could be difficult for Mitchell to win.
"If she gets a couple people on the jury that maybe have had some family drama, like she has apparently lived through, and can get those folks on the jury? And then sort of appeal to them, where they are internalizing what her dilemma was, and then she can hang the jury with a couple of jurors," Applebaum explained.
He also says Mitchell is likely to testify in her own defense. Also of note, there will be a live camera in the court room.
"Once that you have cameras in the courtroom, it does change things," says Twin Cities attorney Joe Tamburino who talked with WCCO-TV. "Everything you do as a defendant, as a defense attorney, as a prosecutor is going to be scrutinized and for good reason. We want to make sure that a trial system is fair, that everybody plays by the rules, that the rules of evidence are followed.
A jury of ten men and five women was seated Monday. That total includes three alternates. The trial is expected to last a week.
Mitchell was able to get the trial delayed until the summer in order to serve out the term of the legislative session, an important decision for Democrats who held a slim, one-seat advantage in the Senate.
Republicans tried unsuccessfully to get Mitchell expelled but didn't have the votes to accomplish that with Democrats saying her court case would determine what happens. Republican State Senator Jordan Rasmussen (Fergus Falls), who authored a motion to expel Mitchell in January, said at the time Mitchell was “using her privilege as a Senator to delay justice.”