RNC court puzzles In Minneapolis, the scheduled appearance of government informant Andrew Clark Darst (“Panda”) on criminal charges including burglary and assault from a January episode, didn’t happen. The Minnesota Independent reports: “Apparently owing to scheduling conflicts for attorneys involved in the case, the legal matter was dealt with in an impromptu hearing earlier in the day.” The upshot: no jury trial, meaning no public testimony. Instead, in a highly unusual arrangement, Darst agreed that a judge will decide whether or not he is guilty based on written court records. The ruling is scheduled for next Monday.
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Tag Archives: taxation
News Day: RNC court puzzles / One in ten MPS kids homeless? / Battle of the budgets / AIG awful / FMLN wins in El Salvador / more
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News Day: Un-real tax values / MN Stimulus /Closed U /Jail bust, not break /CIA torture /Pakistan protests /more
Un-real estate tax values So you paid $155,000 for your house just two months ago — and now the tax man says it is worth $189,000? That’s the story for one south Minneapolis homeowner, reports the Strib, and homeowners throughout the metro area are girding to do battle over assessed valuations this spring. Though home values have fallen swiftly, the taxable values set by metro-area tax authorities have not. All seven metro counties predict declines in assessed valuation of two to ten percent, although the average home sales price has fallen by one-third since September 2007. Tax assessors say the problem is the lag time in estimating values. They expect an avalanche of appeals from assessed valuations this year.
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News Day: Coleman cyber-follies / Middle class pays more /Snowing the recount / Somali youth / Cops hate Sara Jane / more
Middle class pays more Even in Minnesota, says a Department of Revenue study, rich people pay less in taxes than the middle class. See Who pays Minnesota’s taxes>
Coleman cyber-follies While Norm Coleman is calling it “chilling” and “scary,” a closer look shows that the disclosure of names and credit card information of Coleman campaign donors on the internet is the fault of no one but … the Coleman campaign, which violated basic on-line security procedures. Continue reading
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Mary Turck