Stories from March 27, 2025

Minnesota lawyers say increased immigration enforcement is filling courtrooms
It’s been just more than two months since the Trump administration began implementing its plans to deport more people in the country without legal status. And the impact is being felt at the Fort Snelling Immigration Court.
After the federal government abruptly cut COVID program grants this week, the Minnesota Department of Health is considering layoffs. And the largest union for state employees is telling it's members they will push back on the governor's plan to send state workers back to the office half time.
Karen Russell’s ‘The Antidote’ is an American epic — and well worth the wait
Russell has published excellent short story collections since her 2011 debut novel “Swamplandia!,” but this is her first novel in nearly 15 years. It follows a “Prairie Witch” in Dust Bowl-era Nebraska.
Why Amanda Knox returns to Italy — and how she talks with her daughter about injustice
Amanda Knox spent nearly four years in an Italian prison for a murder she didn’t commit. After her exoneration, she reached out to the man who prosecuted her case. Knox’s new memoir is “Free.”
New book traces 75-year history of U.S. military climate research
The U.S. military unearthed data about rising sea levels in the early 1950s — and has been closely watching this threat to national security ever since. MPR News chief meteorologist Paul Huttner and geoscientist Paul Bierman talk about climate research by the U.S. Military Forces.
Egg shortage prompts more backyard chickens, but bird rescuer cautions prospective owners
There is a rush to begin raising backyard chickens as grocery store egg prices continue to skyrocket amid shortages blamed on bird flu. However, raising chickens and getting eggs isn’t as easy or speedy as people may think.
On new album, DIY punk band The Taxpayers seek solace during violent times
DIY punk band The Taxpayers channel personal loss, grief and a search for refuge into their new album “Circle Breaker,” written in the wake of the 2023 Nudieland shooting that killed their friend August Golden.
MDH commissioner: $226 million cuts to federal COVID-19 grants ‘shortsighted’
The federal government is cancelling $226 million in public health funding. Minnesota Department of Health Commissioner Brooke Cunningham said the cuts will have impacts in Minnesota.
Foragers want a seat at the rulemaking table as DNR mulls mushroom, berry bag limits
The DNR is considering bag limits on how much food people can take from state-managed lands. That gallon limit is ringing alarm bells for foraging groups like the Minnesota Mycological Society.
Musk announces $1 million for Wisconsin voter in Supreme Court race. Opposition calls it 'corrupt'
Billionaire Elon Musk says a Wisconsin voter has been awarded $1 million just days before the conclusion of a fiercely contested state Supreme Court election that's broken spending records. He announced the payment to a Green Bay man on Wednesday night on his social media platform X. 
Amtrak bringing in replacement rail cars, will resume Borealis train service
Amtrak says train service on its Borealis passenger rail line between St. Paul to Chicago will resume in part on Thursday, and in full on Friday, after being temporarily replaced with buses.
The Trump administration’s impact on free speech
President Donald Trump says he’s brought back free speech. But has he? MPR News host Catharine Richert talks about the consequences of expressing some ideas under the Trump administration.  
Turkish student at Tufts University detained, video shows masked people handcuffing her
A lawyer for a Turkish national and doctoral student at Tufts University says she has been detained by Department of Homeland Security agents without explanation. The lawyer for 30-year-old Rumeysa Ozturk says she had just left her home in Somerville, Massachusetts, on Tuesday when she was stopped by agents.
Raccoon survives encounter with electrical transformer in Rochester
Nearly seven years after the MPR raccoon survived its high-wire adventure on the side of a St. Paul skyscraper — another Minnesota raccoon has beaten the odds to escape a life-threatening predicament.
Former state Sen. Justin Eichorn has been released under conditions to a halfway house as a criminal case that led to his resignation proceeds. And the Minneapolis City Council is discussing a proposal Thursday to bring violence interruption services to the Cedar Riverside and Elliot Park neighborhoods.
Trump officials downplay the Signal leak. Some military members see a double standard
The news of the leak of life-and-death operational details to a reporter lands differently with veterans and active-duty troops, who can be prosecuted for much less significant “spillage” incidents.
Sunshine and 60s Thursday followed by thunderstorms and snow
A calm before the storm with filtered sunshine and temperatures rising into the 50s and 60s Thursday. By Friday, highs will soar into the 70s and 80s before the next system arrives, bringing a threat of severe weather to the south, accumulating snow to central Minnesota and the potential for ice up north.
Minneapolis city leaders approve plan to retain violence interrupters in Cedar Riverside
Some residents of the Cedar Riverside area and Elliot Park neighborhoods say the groups of unarmed civilian patrols called violence interrupters helped reduce crime between 2021 and 2024.
In St. Cloud, leaders of color aim to fill community's housing need
Several organizations in St. Cloud led by people of color are working to address local housing needs. A recent study found the city will need 17,000 new housing units over the next decade and a half to meet anticipated demand.