No more jail time over girl on car's roof

No more jail time over girl on car's roof Rarity Abdullah won't have to serve any more jail time for an incident last summer in which he took off in his ex-girlfriend's car while she clung to the hood clutching her 4-month-old daughter.

Abdullah, 24, received a one-year stayed sentence and will be on probation for up to two years. He was given credit for 16 days already served in jail.

He and Blythe Jarrett, 27, were charged with gross misdemeanor child endangerment after the incident on July 10, 2007. Jarrett pleaded guilty last August and also received a yearlong stayed sentence and up to two years' probation. Abdullah pleaded guilty in April.

According to court documents and police reports, Abdullah took Jarrett's keys and got behind the wheel of her car. In an effort to stop him, Jarrett jumped on the hood while holding her infant. Abdullah drove about a mile and a half on St. Paul streets before being stopped by police. At times, the vehicle's speed reached 45 to 50 miles per hour.

Jarrett's daughter was placed in protective custody at the time, but it is not clear from the documents if or when the child was returned to her.

PAT PHEIFER

Man is sentenced for preying on girls A Minneapolis man was sentenced Tuesday to 12 1/2 years for sexually assaulting a 12-year-old Scott County girl in her home almost two years ago.

Before being sentenced in a Shakopee courtroom, Wenner "apologized and told the family he prays for their forgiveness and their healing," said his attorney, Beau McGraw. He said with credit for time served and good behavior, Wenner will serve about 7 years, 4 months, and during that time will "take full advantage of sex offender treatment and chemical health therapy."

Wenner must register as a predatory offender and will be on supervised release for 10 years after he leaves prison.

Wenner was arrested July 11, 2007, after trying to coax a 12-year-old Lakeville girl into his car. Police spotted the vehicle and learned it matched the description of the one seen at the Cannon Falls attempted abduction. It also matched a vehicle that Northfield police were seeking for attempted abductions earlier that day of 11- and 14-year-old girls. Wenner will be sentenced Aug. 25 in Rice County District Court for the Northfield case.

JIM ADAMS

Court upholds sentence in fatal beating The Minnesota Court of Appeals on Tuesday upheld the 30-year sentence handed down to Robert Cindrich, one of two men convicted in the 2003 beating death of 15-year-old Ben Doran.

Cindrich and fellow gang member Chawtell Nestell were out in St. Paul's North End looking for a 13-year-old who punched his girlfriend's brother the evening of March 31, 2003. Instead they found Doran, who was walking home with friends after a basketball game. They chased him down and beat him to death, according to court documents.

Cindrich pleaded guilty to unintentional second-degree murder, and a district judge sentenced him to 30 years. The following year, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that only a jury, not a judge, can find the aggravating factors necessary to justify a longer sentence.

A sentencing jury found in 2006 that Cindrich's sentence did fit the crime. Cindrich appealed, arguing that the district court improperly instructed the jury regarding the aggravating factors. The Appeals Court ruled that the evidence supported the jury's finding.

Nestell also received a 30-year sentence in Doran's death. He did not appeal it.

PAT PHEIFER

The latest occurred about 11:55 p.m. Sunday, when two people approached a parking services employee inside the Oak Street Ramp on the university's East Bank campus and demanded money. The man resisted and hit one of them in the face, said Lt. Chuck Miner. One pulled a gun and pointed it at the victim, Miner said.

It was the second attempted armed robbery on the campus in recent days. On Friday, two teenage males accosted a facilities management employee around 11:40 p.m. as she tried to unlock a door at the Wilson Library. The pair pointed a handgun at the woman, reached for her wallet and demanded money. She resisted and the teens fled, Miner said.

TIM HARLOW

Man charged with exposing self to girl A man accused of exposing himself to an 11-year-old girl who was walking home from school in St. Paul has been charged with fifth-degree criminal sexual conduct.

Brian E. Thompson must appear in Ramsey County District Court on the charges Aug. 11. His current address is unknown.

St. Paul police learned from Roseville police that Thompson was a suspect in similar incidents there. The girl picked Thompson out of a photo lineup June 25.

PAT PHEIFER

Plea is guilty in animal shelter theft A man accused of stealing $15,000 from Animal Ark, a no-kill animal shelter, pleaded guilty Tuesday in Ramsey County District Court to one felony count of theft by swindle.

William C. Strobel, 26, stole the money between Jan. 1 and March 31 while working as a temporary bookkeeper at the organization's thrift store in St. Paul.

He was a volunteer in the store when its usual bookkeeper unexpectedly became ill. Strobel was charming, knew his way around the computer system, said he had bookkeeping experience and got the job, Mike Fry, executive director of Animal Ark, said after Strobel was charged.

He will be sentenced Sept. 17.

PAT PHEIFER

Teen who died at concert is identified Officials have identified the Wisconsin teenager found dead Friday on the grounds of a music festival in northwestern Minnesota, but say they are unsure how she died.

Becker County Sheriff Tim Gordon said foul play did not factor in the death of Ashley Marie McCoy, 17, of West Salem. Authorities are still awaiting toxicology reports from an autopsy, Gordon said.

McCoy attended the 10,000 Lakes Music Festival at the Soo Pass Ranch near Detroit Lakes. She had been sleeping in a tent at her campsite in the Northwoods Campground when friends found her dead about 9:30 a.m.

2 die in crashes on Minnesota roads Two people were killed Monday in separate accidents on Minnesota roads, the State Patrol said.

A 32-year-old motorcyclist from Faribault, Minn., died around 8 p.m. when he veered off Hwy. 21 at Dodd Road in Rice County. The man, whose name has not been released, lost control of the bike and hit an embankment, the patrol said. It was not clear whether he was wearing a helmet.

In central Minnesota, a 35-year-old man from Starbuck, Minn., died when he lost control of his pickup truck and crashed into a ditch, the patrol said. The victim, whose name has not been released, was driving south on Hwy. 29 near Pope County Road 14.

TIM HARLOW

Bridge is under scrutiny in derailment A train derailment in southeastern Minnesota near Reno, Minn., could be related to the failure of a wooden railroad bridge.

An IC&E spokesman says 27 cars derailed Tuesday morning. The derailment spilled ethanol on Hwy. 26 near Reno, near the Iowa border. The highway is expected to stay closed until this afternoon.

ASSOCIATED PRESS

Arco girl, 12, dies in accidental shooting A 12-year-old girl from Arco, Minn., is dead after what authorities say is an accidental shooting.

The Lincoln County Sheriff's Office said Natasha Skorczewski was shot Monday afternoon when a 20-gauge shotgun went off as her 11-year-old brother was unloading it.

ASSOCIATED PRESS

Pilot Ronald Cappo, 52, reported that his plane was experiencing engine trouble after taking off from an airstrip near Chisholm, Minn. He crashed about 8:30 p.m. in a field near Dewey Lake, 10 miles northwest of Chisholm, Friebe said.

Cappo and his passenger, Daniel Charter, 49, also of Chisholm, were hospitalized with injuries that weren't life-threatening.