Chloe Johnson

Google announces Minnesota data center in Pine Island, near Rochester An agreement with Xcel Energy includes an investment in clean energy the utility provider says will help the state meet carbon-free goals.

NEW: Google will build a data center in Pine Island, near Rochester. The tech giant will also pay for a significant amount of new wind, solar & battery power.

Google has been eyeing the state for at least a year, but had been quiet about its plans:

www.startribune.com/google-annou...

Trump administration formally denies Minnesota investigators access to evidence in Alex Pretti shooting Drew Evans, the superintendent of the Minnesota BCA, said the FBI has formally denied his agency access to evidence and information from the killing of Pretti at the hands of federal officers.

Trump administration formally denies Minnesota investigators access to evidence in Alex Pretti shooting

The Feb. 1 front page of the Star Tribune

The front page of tomorrow's Minnesota Star Tribune: Feb. 1, 2026

The Minnesota Star Tribune, Minnesota Public Radio, the Minnesota Reformer, Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder, Sahan Journal, Center for Broadcast Journalism and Minnesota Newspaper Association today released the following statement: “We strongly condemn the arrest of journalists Georgia Fort and Don Lemon, as well as any attempt to intimidate members of the press. The First Amendment recognizes the press as holding a distinct and protected role in our democracy. In America, we do not arrest journalists for doing their jobs. The Minnesota journalism community stands united in defense of press freedom and the essential role reporting plays in holding power to account.”

The Minnesota Star Tribune, @mprnews.org @minnesotareformer.com , @spokesmanrecorder.bsky.social, @sahanjournal.bsky.social, Center for Broadcast Journalism and Minnesota Newspaper Association today released the following statement:

Here's how to identify some crowd control munitions, canisters of which federal agents have left on the ground after deploying them against people in Minnesota. bit.ly/3YWp1jE

Graphic by Mark Boswell/The Minnesota Star Tribune

Tomorrow’s front page of the Minnesota Star Tribune: Jan. 23, 2026

Federal agents pinned a man to the ground in south Minneapolis and sprayed him with chemical irritants directly in the face.

Minnesota Star Tribune photographer Rich Tsong-Taatarii did not witness the man put his hands on agents.

Several agents hold a person down and sprays them with pepper spray.

An observer arrested in Suth Minneapolis. Photo by Richard Tsong-Taatarii/The Minnesota Star Tribune

Immigration officers assert sweeping power to enter homes without a judge's warrant, memo says An Immigration and Customs Enforcement memo obtained by The Associated Press reveals that the agency allows immigration officers to forcibly enter homes to make arrests without a judicial warrant.

BREAKING: Immigration officers are asserting sweeping power to enter homes without a judge’s warrant, a memo obtained by AP says.

theyre SO salty!!

Two days after an ICE agent killed Renee Good in Minneapolis, a federal agent asked an observer, "Have y'all not learned?" Her phone was taken and she was briefly detained.

Two days after that, another federal agent said, “You did not learn from what just happened” to a different observer.

Minneapolis prepares for ‘March Against Minnesota Fraud’ led by right-wing influencer At a weekly public safety meeting, residents raised fears that a Saturday march led by conservative influencer Jake Lang could result in Somali residents being harassed on the street.

Minneapolis prepares for ‘March Against Minnesota Fraud’ led by right-wing influencer

www.startribune.com/minneapolis-...

Live: Shooting reported in Minneapolis allegedly involving federal agents Gov. Tim Walz address Minnesotans in a live broadcast Wednesday night on the surge of federal immigration agents in Minnesota. A federal judge has declined to immediately rule on the ICE surge in Minn...

There are reports of a shooting involving federal law enforcement in north Minneapolis. We will be updating our live blog at the MN Star Tribune as we get more info. Please consider following local sources during breaking news situations, we are familiar with the area in a way national media isn't.

Joe Thompson, U.S. Attorney who uncovered massive fraud in Minnesota, resigns from office Thompson has been at the center of the national debate around fraud in Minnesota and has claimed that billions have been stolen from tax payers.

The majority of the leadership team inside Minnesota’s U.S. Attorney’s Office resigned Tuesday in protest of directives from federal officials in the wake of the killing of Renee Good, according to sources familiar with the decision.

Joe Thompson, U.S. Attorney who uncovered massive fraud in Minnesota, resigns from office Thompson has been at the center of the national debate around fraud in Minnesota and has claimed that billions have been stolen from tax payers.

Joe Thompson, US Attorney who was leading fraud investigations in Minnesota, resigns. By Jeff Day @startribune.com www.startribune.com/joe-thompson...

The first time Kovarik saw private data used by ICE agents was a couple days after Christmas. They were observing ICE agents while a friend from Robbinsdale drove. The agents had already stopped them to warn they'd be arrested, but they kept following the vehicle. Then they realized the agents were leading them to their friend's home in Robbinsdale. "He pulled up to her house, both the agents got out of the car and were both performatively and theatrically taking pictures of her house," Kovarik said. "Then they drove off and they went around to the back alley behind her house and took pictures of the back of her house." It happened again to Kovarik last week when an ICE agent led them to a residence where Kovarik used to live. "It's one of many intimidation tactics, and obviously people should be safe," Kovarik said, "but if you feel pretty comfortable that ... they're not really going to be able to do anything to harm you, I think it's to our benefit to show them that we're not scared."

New story from @jcollins.bsky.social on ICE attempts to intimidate ICE Watch observers in Minneapolis, including ICE letting them know they know where they live—by leading them to their homes www.mprnews.org/story/2026/0...

Live: Minnesota officials rail against federal government taking over ICE shooting probe Gov. Walz called for a day of unity. Federal and state officials clashed over the fatal shooting by an ICE agent as the FBI takes control of the investigation.

Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty and Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison announced today that their offices, alongside the Minnesota BCA, will pursue an independent investigation into the fatal shooting of Renee Good by ICE agent Jonathan Ross.

ICE agent who fatally shot woman in Minneapolis is identified Jonathan Ross, a Minnesota-based agent, was dragged in a separate incident last year by a fleeing motorist.

The agent, Jonathan Ross, was dragged by a vehicle and injured during a June operation in the Twin Cities, court records show.

White text on a green card that says: Statement from the Minnesota Star Tribune: We are currently monitoring a coordinated online disinformation campaign incorrectly identifying the ICE agent involved in yesterday’s shooting. To be clear, the ICE agent has no known affiliation with the Star Tribune. We encourage people looking for factual information reported and written by trained journalists, not bots, to follow and subscribe to the Minnesota Star Tribune.

Statement from the Minnesota Star Tribune:

I'm already seeing people on here use AI face tools to try to identify the masked ICE agent in Minneapolis. It's a truly terrible idea and here's why

‘She was an amazing human being:’ Mother identifies woman shot, killed by ICE agent Renee Nicole Good, 37, lived in the Twin Cities with her partner.

"Renee was one of the kindest people I’ve ever known,” her mother said. “She was extremely compassionate. She’s taken care of people all her life. She was loving, forgiving and affectionate. She was an amazing human being.” www.startribune.com/she-was-an-a...

Live: ICE agent shoots, kills woman in Minneapolis Local law enforcement flooded the scene in south Minneapolis following the shooting around 9:30 a.m.

Live updates: Law enforcement agents have closed off several blocks of Portland Avenue as hundreds of people gather at the scene of the shooting near Portland and E. 34th Street.

Live: Mayor Frey blasts ICE in fiery response to fatal shooting The mayor called for calm after a fatal shooting by an immigration agent in south Minneapolis. ICE said the agent acted defensively.

My very smart colleagues are doing excellent coverage of the ICE shooting in Minneapolis today. I would urge you to follow along with local sources familiar with the area and the residents here.

Have you or your family sought free hospital care in Minnesota? We want to hear from you. Have you or someone you know had trouble with medical bills? Tell us your story.

We need your help with a project looking into hospitals that make it challenging to apply for charity care or take exceptional actions to collect medical debts. Have you or someone you know had trouble with medical bills? Share your story here:

I was investigating PFAS. Then a doctor told me to put it in my eyes. Facing a painful and distracting case of dry eye, a reporter went looking for treatments. What she found was surprising.

Our reporter was investigating Minnesota’s ban on PFAS chemicals when she faced a painful and distracting case of dry eye. So @chloeajohnson.bsky.social went looking for treatments. She was prescribed an eye drop that's a type of PFAS.

Colorado man declared dead by Social Security still fighting to restart payments: “I’m at my wit’s end” Alex Vukovich’s Social Security check disappeared from his bank account in late January after the federal agency mistakenly placed him on its list of deceased recipients.

The Social Security Administration snatched Alex Vukovich’s January payment right out of his bank account and hasn’t made February or March payments — because the government insists he's dead. (He's not)

We tested household products for PFAS using Minnesota’s new regulations. Here’s what we found. The Star Tribune used a screening test similar to what the MPCA would. Some results were above the level that could trigger a state inquiry.

Today's must-read from @chloeajohnson.bsky.social & @readbrooks.bsky.social... They bought items from local stores & tested them for PFAS chemicals to see how Minnesota's new law is working. www.startribune.com/we-tested-ho...

We tested household products for PFAS using Minnesota’s new regulations. Here’s what we found. The Star Tribune used a screening test similar to what the MPCA would. Some results were above the level that could trigger a state inquiry.

Great story up today on PFAs in household products by @chloeajohnson.bsky.social & Brooks Johnson
www.startribune.com/we-tested-ho...

DHS official defends Mahmoud Khalil arrest, but offers few details on why it happened Homeland Security deputy secretary Troy Edgar offered few details on the Trump administration's legal reasoning to deport Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil.

this interview is incredible www.npr.org/2025/03/13/n...

BREAKING: Trump team has removed the top IRS attorney as career staff resist demands to give DOGE access to sensitive taxpayer records, multiple sources say

DHS has sought home addresses of undocumented immigrants who pay taxes

W/ @jacobbogage.bsky.social & co