An unidentified man was shot near the State Capitol on Saturday afternoon and was taken to a hospital just hours after protesters clashed there.
The motive for the shooting remains under investigation, but police do not believe the violence was related to protests by two dueling groups over Islam that took place at the Capitol, St. Paul police spokesman Steve Linders said. That protest, regarding differing interpretations of Islamic sharia law, culminated in some scuffles and arrests around 1 p.m.
About 3 p.m. Saturday, officers responded to a report of shots fired near the intersection of University Avenue and Rice Street, just northwest of the Capitol building. Authorities discovered one male suffering from an apparent gunshot wound. The man was sent by ambulance to Regions Hospital with what appeared to be noncritical injuries.
No further information was available Saturday night. There was nothing so far to indicate the shooting was related to the protest, Linders said.
Joe Carlson • 612-673-4779
