An ethics panel in the Minnesota Senate will wait for developments in DFL Sen. Nicole Mitchell’s criminal case before deciding whether to advance to a full investigation.

As previously reported by 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS, Mitchell is charged with burglary after allegedly breaking into her mother-in-law’s house on the morning of April 22 in Detroit Lakes. Republican senators filed an ethics complaint two days later.

RELATED: Sen. Mitchell’s stepmother still fearful after burglary: ‘I get goosebumps talking about it’

The ethics committee — made of two Republicans and two Democrats — met for the first time on Tuesday and could recommend anything from a reprimand to removal from office.

Mitchell’s hearing started several hours after it was supposed to, and lawmakers didn’t get many answers about the night in question.

Through her attorney, Bruce Ringstrom Jr., Mitchell repeatedly pleaded the Fifth Amendment.

“Mr. Ringstrom, do you feel your clients’ actions on April 22, 2024, adhere to the highest ethical standards as embodied by the Minnesota Constitution, state law and Senate rules?” Sen. Jeremy Miller(R-Winona) asked.

“She pleads the Fifth Amendment,” Ringstrom responded.

According to the criminal complaint, Mitchell said she broke into her stepmother’s home because her father had recently passed away and she wanted to get items of sentimental value, including his ashes.

But Republican lawmakers on the committee pointed out the differences between what she told police and the Facebook statement she made after the fact in which she said she was checking on a family member whose health is declining due to Alzheimer’s disease.

Mitchell’s attorney made the argument that the matter needs to go through criminal court before a full investigation into the ethics complaint can move forward.

“Conducting an ethics investigation after the criminal investigation feels appropriate, but by conducting an ethics investigation before the criminal case, you are participating in a witch hunt,” Ringstrom said.

Miller maintained that the committee’s job was not to determine whether Mitchell is guilty of a crime but rather to decide whether she violated Senate ethical standards.

“We are not here to be judge and jury,” Miller said. “We don’t all have to be attorneys. We are here to determine if one of our colleagues violated the ethical standard of the Minnesota State Senate.”

After hearing arguments from Republican complainants and Mitchell’s attorney, committee members took several votes on how to proceed but struggled to come to an agreement.

Both DFL members of the committee, Sens. Bobby Joe Champion and Mary Kunesh, supported waiting until after the criminal case had finished, or at least until after Mitchell’s next court date on June 10. The two Republicans on the committee, Miller and Sen. Andrew Mathews, moved there is probable cause and pushed to continue the investigation on Wednesday.

After a brief closed-door meeting, the committee came back and voted to continue the proceedings on June 12. They also agreed to reconvene if anything substantial came up between now and then.