Minneapolis police arrest man with history of reported abuse in suspicious death of roommate

A Minneapolis man charged with two brutal assaults against a homeless woman who was staying in his apartment on and off this year is now jailed as a suspect in her suspicious death.

Minneapolis police arrested Scott W. Carlson, 67, on Monday following a 911 call to his downtown apartment just after 8 a.m. First Precinct officers responding to the building at 910 Portland Av. found an injured, unresponsive woman who was pronounced dead at the scene.

The Hennepin County Medical Examiner identified the victim as Kimberly Ann Brandenberg, 54.

A police spokesman said investigators are still working to determine the sequence of events, but described Brandenberg’s death as suspicious. Carlson was booked into Hennepin County jail later that night on probable cause murder. Formal charges are pending.

Carlson has a history of reported abuse against Brandenberg inside that same Elliot Park apartment. On Dec. 1, the same day as her death, prosecutors charged him via warrant with third-degree assault stemming from a violent physical and sexual assault earlier this summer.

On July 8, Brandenberg sought treatment at HCMC for significant trauma to her head and face, records show. She reported that Carlson suddenly accused her of seeing other men and attacked her while sitting on the couch. He repeatedly punched and slapped her, charges say, before burning her foot with a cigarette.

Carlson eventually pulled her into the bedroom and sexually assaulted her, she alleged.

Brandenberg, who at the time described herself to police as unhoused, was staying with Carlson on and off that summer. Court records show she had been evicted from her own unit on a different floor of the same complex in February.

On Oct. 18, Brandenberg returned to HCMC following another reported assault by Carlson. In that case, charges say, she alleged Carlson choked and pushed her, then pulled her hair. That incident was never forwarded to the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office for potential charges.

Minneapolis police say it remains under investigation.

The July case did not result in criminal charges for nearly five months.

When pressed on the delay, Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty explained that police investigators submitted the assault case to her office for charging on Sept. 18 — more than two months after the crime occurred.

Prosecutors returned that criminal complaint to MPD for final sign off on Nov. 24, she said. Charges were not filed in court until Dec. 1.

By then, Brandenberg was already dead.

“The community can rely on this office to hold itself accountable,” Moriarty said. “Changes are being made, and staff resources are being strategically reallocated to reduce the possibility of similar circumstances occurring in the future.”

At his first court appearance Friday afternoon, Carlson briefly appeared in an orange jumpsuit behind thick plexiglass as attorneys argued about his bail.

Assistant County Attorney Tara Ferguson-Lopez emphasized that he is accused of two violent assaults — which resulted in serious injuries — against the same victim, who has since been found dead in Carlson’s home.

Hennepin County public defender Bryan Leary argued Carlson did not present an ongoing threat to public safety and that his alcohol use and pending investigations outside the bounds of the assault charge should not be considered. “That’s improper,” Leary said, noting that Carlson has a sparse criminal history.

Judge Mark Kappelhoff expressed concern that accusations Carlson burned the alleged victim with cigarettes “suggests some form of torture.”

“Given the violent nature of this charge, I do think he is a substantial threat to public safety,” said Kappelhoff, who set bail at $100,000 without conditions or $75,000 with conditions, including that Carlson remain sober, abide by the law and surrender all weapons.

Carlson is due back in court on Jan. 2.