South St. Paul residents have filed a formal recall petition against City Council Member Pam Bakken, who faced public pressure to resign after a boy allegedly ingested meth at a day care she owns.

As previously reported, a 3-year-old child consumed an unknown substance at the in-home day care on Dec. 6. The boy’s family was notified that he had thrown up at lunch, and he was acting strange when his mother, Victoria Kane, picked him up.

A trip to the doctor confirmed that the boy had meth in his system, but he was expected to be OK.

Three days later, the Minnesota Department of Human Services temporarily suspended the facility’s license, following up with an indefinite suspension in March.

Now, frustrated with a lack of action from the City Council, a citizen-led recall effort has filed official paperwork calling for Bakken’s ouster.

“I truly wish members of Council would speak up for what’s right and join the community in calling for
Bakken’s resignation – and I wish Pam would simply step down,” said Molly Smith, chair of the Committee to Recall Bakken. “We could avoid a painful recall process and further embarrassment to the City. I’d like to remind Pam and the rest of Council that it’s always the right time to do what’s right.”

South St. Paul City Clerk Deanna Werner told 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS the petition was certified Friday morning. The committee now has until May 12 to collect 2,763 valid signatures — equal to 25% of the turnout for last year’s city election.

If the group gathers enough signatures by the deadline, Werner’s office will have five days to verify the signatures. If any entries are thrown out and put the petition below the 25% threshold, the committee will have another 10 days to get the requisite signatures.

5 EYEWITNESS NEWS has reached out to Bakken for comment and is awaiting a response.