GOP senators grill Sen. Nicole Mitchell’s attorneys during ethics hearing about her burglary charge

Republican state senators clashed with attorneys representing DFL Sen. Nicole Mitchell during a closely watched ethics committee hearing Tuesday evening, arguing the senator who was charged with felony first-degree burglary violated the chamber’s ethical standards and should face legislative punishment.

Mitchell’s legal team countered that she is entitled to due process. Attorney Bruce Ringstrom Jr. accused GOP senators of engaging in a “witch hunt” by trying to make a definitive judgment before Mitchell’s criminal case has played out.

“This case belongs in court,” Ringstrom said, speaking on behalf of Mitchell, who remained silent throughout the hearing. “Then it can be dealt with by this subcommittee.”

Ringstrom repeatedly pleaded the Fifth Amendment when asked about specific details of the case, such as whether Mitchell dressed in all black and broke into her stepmother’s Detroit Lakes home through a basement window, as the criminal complaint filed against her describes.

GOP state Sen. Karin Housley argued that Mitchell premeditated her burglary: “She was dressed to conceal her movements and drove more than three hours to reach her destination,” Housley said, referring to the complaint’s statements that Mitchell drove from Woodbury to Detroit Lakes in the middle of the night.

“Carol Mitchell is the victim. Her sense of safety in her own home was compromised,” said Housley, R-Stillwater, referring to the stepmother.

Democrats and Republicans on the evenly divided Senate ethics subcommittee did not agree on whether Mitchell violated ethical standards. They delayed a decision and agreed to meet again about the matter on June 12, or earlier if new evidence emerges.

A Senate DFL spokesman said the House and Senate haven’t acted on an ethics complaint before a court case has been resolved in at least 40 years.

Senate DFLers have argued Mitchell deserves due process, though the caucus did remove her from its meetings and stripped her of legislative committee assignments. Democrats who control the Senate by a one-seat margin need Mitchell’s vote to pass a long list of bills.

Senate President Bobby Joe Champion, DFL-Minneapolis, accused Republicans of “making a gigantic leap because you’re trying to get to a conclusion.”

“You’re assuming things that you don’t know,” Champion said, adding that all evidence should be tested in court.

Republicans have strenuously objected to Mitchell voting on major legislation while charged with a felony. Mitchell returned to the Senate floor last week and voted on motions that would have directly affected her ability to participate in the chamber. When GOP senators motioned for the chamber to officially request her resignation, Mitchell voted against it.

Sen. Eric Lucero, R-St. Michael, questioned how Minnesotans can trust a senator facing a serious felony charge.

“Do we hold this body’s reputation to the highest standard when its members are accused of engaging in a crime of violence?” Lucero said.

The ethics complaint Republicans filed against Mitchell alleged she violated multiple rules of Senate conduct and asked that the ethics panel “work expeditiously to review the circumstances of this complaint and recommend discipline to the Rules Committee.” The Republicans said the ethics panel should look into the circumstances of Mitchell’s alleged burglary of her estranged relative’s home and her public statements in the aftermath of her arrest, and then recommend appropriate disciplinary action.

According to the criminal complaint, police said Mitchell admitted to entering the home through a sliding basement window, and officers found a flashlight covered with a black sock and a backpack nearby.

She allegedly told police, “I know I did something bad,” but said she entered the home to take some of her late father’s belongings, including his ashes. After she was released from jail, Mitchell shared a different version of events in a Facebook post, denying stealing and saying she was trying to conduct a welfare check on a family member who has declined “due to Alzheimer’s and associated paranoia.”

Mitchell’s arrest opened a gaping partisan divide in the Senate and called into question the chamber’s ability to take action on tougher bills from an Equal Rights Amendment to gun safety measures and the legalization of sports betting.

The ethics panel has a range of options from doing nothing to dismissal to a determination of probable cause for further investigation. The panel is evenly split with two Democrats and two Republicans. To take action, at least three committee members must agree, meaning the vote must be bipartisan.

Champion is chair of the subcommittee. The other DFL member is Sen. Mary Kunesh of New Brighton. The GOP members are Sens. Andrew Mathews of Princeton and Jeremy Miller of Winona.