Minnesota Now

Sanford Health, based in Sioux Falls and Fairview Health Systems in Minneapolis want to join forces. Cathy Wurzer gets reactions from Cara Hetland, the Director of Radio and Journalism Content for South Dakota Public Broadcasting, and Laurie Swanson, former Minnesota Attorney General who dealt with a similar merger plan in 2013.

The Sanford and Fairview health systems are planning to merge. We talk about why that plan didn't pan out the first time it was proposed and what it could mean for patient care this time around. The film maker behind a new documentary tells the story of three indigenous women working to honor their missing and murdered relatives. Paul Huttner is back to give us a look at our extended forecast. Ellen Stanley has featured local folk, bluegrass and roots artists for 20 years on K-F-A-I and she's celebrating the past two decades of music with an event this weekend.

Thirty years after the murder of Minneapolis police officer Jerry Haaf, one of people convicted in his death could be released. We're looking back at the murder and what the potential parole could mean.

And for the first time, meteorologists — two of them! — have been elected to the state legislature. We’ll hear from them.

Speaking of weather... some dicey conditions Monday morning made for hundreds of crashes. A longtime driver's ed instructor shares how he teaches new drivers to stay safe on the road.

And a Minneapolis reporter has a new nickname for Sioux Falls, South Dakota. We'll hear all about the "City of Hustle."

Sioux Falls is South Dakota’s largest city. It's also known as the Queen City. But a new anthology, exploring the history of Sioux Falls, offers another nickname.

Patrick Hicks is co-editor of City of Hustle: A Sioux Falls Anthology. And Christopher Vondracek is one of the contributing writers. The two spoke with host Cathy Wurzer.

Minnesota's is a citizen legislature with each member bringing a vast array of backgrounds and experiences to the job. This coming session, in the senate chamber will be not one but two meteorologists.

Nicole Mitchell is now state Senator Mitchell. She is a former TV meteorologist for KSTP-TV, and represents District 47 which is Woodbury and Oakdale. Rob Kupec is a former TV meteorologist for KVRR in the Red River Valley. He will represent District 4, the Moorhead-Detroit Lakes area.

We have reason to believe they are the very first meteorologists who will be Minnesota senators. The two talked with host Cathy Wurzer.

Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation. 

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We attempt to make transcripts for Minnesota Now available the next business day after a broadcast. When ready they will appear here. 

There were nearly 600 crashes reported on Minnesota roads Monday. The first snowfall of the year in much of the state made for dicey conditions.

Two people died, and at least 45 were injured.

It’s the time of the year when many of us could use a refresher on how to drive safely on snow and ice. And our next guest has taught new drivers exactly that for 23 years. Cathy Wurzer talked to Jim Hudspeth, who teaches driver’s education in Shakopee and New Prague.

One of four men convicted in the shooting death of a Minneapolis police office back in 1992 will have a hearing today that could open the door for his release from prison.

The murder of officer Jerry Haaf was a shocking case that made big headlines back in 1992. Officer Haaf was shot in the back while taking a break on his overnight shift in a Lake Street pizza restaurant.

Amwati Peppi McKenzie, one of four convicted in Haaf's death, was 19 years old at the time. He's now 49 years old. He never testified at trial. He was convicted of aiding and abetting first degree murder. His attorneys are now advocating for his release, a move that's opposed by Haaf's family, former MPD leaders, and police advocates. Today McKenzie will appear before the one person who will decide his fate, Corrections Commissioner Paul Schnell.

Tee Ananzi Wilson is a lawyer and the founding director of the center for the study of black life and the law and the Hamline Mitchell school of law. He talked about the process with host Cathy Wurzer.

There's jubilation in Kherson, Ukraine after the city was liberated from Russian captors. We'll talk to a former Minnesota reporter who is in Ukraine.

A Minnesota cannabis attorney shares what consumers should watch for when buying THC edibles.

We remember author and activist Meridel Le Sueur on the anniversary of her death. Plus, we'll preview the Twin Cities Jewish Film Festival with its special tribute to the Coen brothers.

Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation. 

Subscribe to the Minnesota Now podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.  

It’s been thirteen years since Joel and Ethan Coen, better known as the Coen Brothers, released “A Serious Man.”

The 2009 film was, in part, a tribute to the St. Louis Park of their youth. And like their most iconic film, Fargo, it was filmed in their home state.

A Serious Man is getting some serious attention from the Twin Cities Jewish Film Festival, which is running through Saturday.

Cathy Wurzer talked to Ben Cohen, director of arts, culture and enrichment at the Minnesota JCC, which is hosting the annual fest.

Meridel Le Seuer was a force. She was a talented writer in the early 1900s who needed to make ends meet at a time when women were not given much opportunity to work outside the home.

She was a Hollywood stuntwoman and the voice of Betty Crocker on the radio for a time. She was also blacklisted for being a communist.

She wrote about workers and women, and her work resonated with generations of women. In today’s installment of Minnesota Now and Then - we remember Meridel Le Sueur who died today, Nov. 14, in 1996. She was 96 years old.