Myon Burrell drug case transferred out of Hennepin County due to conflict of interest

The Dakota County Attorney’s Office says it will handle a new criminal case against Myon Burrell, whose murder sentence was commuted back in 2020.

Prosecutors in Hennepin County charged Burrell with one count of fifth-degree drug possession in connection with an arrest on Thursday. The case was referred to Dakota County due to “conflict bias” because Burrell was a paid staffer on Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty’s campaign.

Burrell was arrested Thursday after investigators had learned Burrell was dealing drugs, including fentanyl and MDMA, a criminal complaint states. Law enforcement obtained a search warrant, and during a traffic stop, officers found a pill in the door of Burrell’s vehicle that tested positive for methamphetamine. A search of his home recovered a briefcase with $60,000 in cash.

This is the second felony case brought against Burrell in the past year. He’s facing charges of gun possession by an ineligible person and fifth-degree drug possession in connection with a separate traffic stop in August. That case was also referred to Dakota County.

Burrell isn’t eligible to have a gun due to his prior murder conviction.

That conviction stems from the 2002 killing of 11-year-old Tyesha Edwards. He was sentenced to life in prison as a teen but was freed after 18 years when the state’s pardons board commuted his sentence.

Burrell remains in custody at the Hennepin County Jail on $75,000 bail with conditions or $100,000 bail with no conditions. His first court appearance is set for Monday afternoon.