State briefs: Minnesota National Guard company from Monticello is headed to Guantanamo Bay

More than 120 soldiers from the Monticello-based 257th Military Police Company of the Minnesota National Guard will be deploying to U.S. Naval Station Guantanamo Bay to guard detainees.

Before deploying, the soldiers will receive specialized training at Fort Bliss, Texas, and additional on-the-job training once they arrive, the Guard said.

The deployment, which is expected to last nine months, was planned before President Donald Trump took office. Trump is expected to sign an executive order directing the Pentagon to continue using the U.S. military prison, which currently houses 41 detainees.

The 257th Military Police deployed to Iraq from 2004 to 2005 and to Afghanistan from 2012 to 2013, where it was responsible for coaching, teaching and mentoring members of the Afghan National Army. The Guard said this is the first time a Minnesota National Guard unit has been deployed to Guantanamo Bay.

Mark Brunswick @markabrunswick

Former River Road Fellowship leader Victor Barnard, who pleaded guilty to two counts of felony sexual assault, has filed a notice of appeal in the case.

Barnard, 55, was sentenced to 30 years in prison for assaulting two girls whose families were among his followers. The assaults, which occurred in the 2000s, were brought to light years after the two left the fellowship.

pam louwagie @pamlouwagie

The Warrior Ink Project, which provides veterans with tattoos as part of their healing if they have experienced trauma, is up and running in a new location.

Tattoo artist Misty Chastain has opened her own shop, Corpus Opus Tattoo, on the second floor of a building at 401 Main St. in downtown Austin.

On Sundays, she provides services through the project, which she and veterans' advocate Derrick Brooks began last year at a store in Rochester. The aim of the project is to pair her artistry with the needle with his skills as a listener to help veterans confront the wounds of war. They don't charge a fee and don't accept donations.

To participate, veterans must have been deployed or be a survivor of military sexual trauma. Brooks said the two are looking for another artist to contribute.

Anyone interested in the project can connect through its Facebook page.