Ethics committee delays action on state Senator Nicole Mitchell until after next court date
A Minnesota Senate subcommittee has again delayed action on state Senator Nicole Mitchell’s criminal charges.
Mitchell (DFL-Woodbury) is accused of breaking into her stepmother’s home earlier this year and has been formally charged with burglary.
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Several members of Mitchell’s own party are now calling for her resignation.
However, as was the case during the committee’s last meeting, members delayed action until after Mitchell’s next court hearing. The committee – which consists of two Republicans and two Democrats – can recommend anything from just a reprimand to removal from office.
Mitchell’s next court hearing is scheduled for July 1, and the committee set its next meeting for July 25, although that could be moved up if members want to act sooner on new information.
Outside of that, Wednesday’s committee meeting was uneventful and didn’t feature any testimony.
Through her attorney, Mitchell has repeatedly pleaded the Fifth Amendment during the last meeting. Her attorney has emphasized the matter needs to go through court before the ethics committee can take action, telling them that doing otherwise would be “participating in a witch hunt.”
However, as reported by 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS last month, the committee emphasized last month that their job was not to determine whether Mitchell is guilty of a crime or not, but rather to decide whether she violated senate ethical standards.
All of this comes as multiple DFL members have called for Mitchell’s resignation, saying the charges have become a distraction for her district and the legislature as a whole.
“I mean, the hypocrisy of this is pretty astounding. And I hope what we see here is Minnesotans waking up and saying hey, look at this. This was complete power politics, partisanship in its worst form,” said Senate Minority Leader Mark Johnson (R- East Grand Forks).
CLICK HERE for all of KSTP’s previous coverage of Nicole Mitchell.