Republican state lawmakers are calling on one of their own to resign after Sen. Justin Eichorn was arrested Monday in Bloomington on suspicion of soliciting an underage girl for sex.

The Bloomington Police Department said Eichorn, 40, of Grand Rapids, solicited sex from a detective posing as a 17-year-old girl online. Eichorn and the detective arranged to meet near the 8300 block of Normandale Boulevard.

Eichorn was seen arriving in his pickup truck at the rendezvous point and was taken into custody just after 5:45 p.m., police said.

As of this publishing, Eichorn remained in the Bloomington Police Department’s custody awaiting transfer to the Hennepin County Jail. Formal charges have yet to be filed.

“As a 40-year-old man, if you come to the Orange Jumpsuit District looking to have sex with
someone’s child, you can expect that we are going to lock you up,” Bloomington Police Chief
Booker Hodges said.

Hodges added that he wants the Minnesota Legislature “to take this case and this type of conduct more seriously.”

Lawmakers react

Republicans in the House and Senate released statements Tuesday afternoon urging Eichorn to step down.

“We are shocked by these reports and this alleged conduct demands an immediate resignation,” the Senate Republican caucus said. “Justin has a difficult road ahead and he needs to focus on his family.”

In a joint statement, House Speaker Lisa Demuth and House Republican Leader Harry Niska said “the seriousness of the charges” warrants Eichorn’s resignation: “While he is entitled to due process, we must hold legislators to a higher standard.”

Minnesota DFL Executive Director Heidi Kraus Kaplan said in a statement that “Senator Eichorn is an immediate danger to the public and must resign immediately.”

Notably, the leader of the Senate DFL caucus did not immediately call for Eichorn to step down.

“The felony allegation against Senator Eichorn is deeply disturbing, and raises serious questions that will need to be answered by the court, as well as his caucus and constituents,” Senate Minority Leader Erin Murphy, DFL-St. Paul, said in a statement. 

A parallel case

Eichorn’s arrest comes as another state senator — Democrat Nicole Mitchell of Woodbury — has a pending felony case after she allegedly broke into her stepmother’s Detroit Lakes home with a crowbar.

Senate Republicans have pushed to have Mitchell removed from the chamber, and shortly after Mitchell’s arrest, Eichorn joined his caucus’ calls for her to resign.

“Sen. Mitchell’s premeditated actions are disturbing. They do not align with the values Minnesotans expect of their elected leaders, and she needs to resign from the Senate,” Eichorn said in a social media post last year.

Eichorn was first elected to the Senate in 2016 and is in his third term.

This is a breaking news story. Check back for updates.