Senate passes public safety bill with judicial pay raises, funding for new gun measures

The Senate passed an $880 million public safety funding bill late Friday that raises pay for judges, directs more money to the public defender system and includes an array of spending on crime investigation and prevention.

Senate Judiciary Chair Ron Latz, DFL-St. Louis Park, described the 200-page bill as spending heavily on the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, law enforcement partnerships and support for victims and first responders. Before the 34-33 party-line vote, Latz thanked his senators for six hours of discussion on the bill.

"Today we're righting the ship. The ship for too long has been lurching in one direction," Latz said, adding that the "tough-on-crime approach" of the GOP was unbalanced.

Republicans who united in opposition countered that the bill is a "Get Out of Jail Free" card for criminals. Sen. Warren Limmer, R-Maple Grove, told reporters, "Quite honestly, I've never seen a more dangerous bill presented from the work of the Senate Judiciary."

All of the proposals in the bill have a long way to go. The House will eventually pass a public safety bill that differs from the Senate version. Leaders from both parties will work out their differences in a conference committee and return the adjusted bills to the two chambers for another round of votes.

One big difference involves new gun provisions. The Senate Judiciary Committee endorsed changes, including expanded criminal background checks for pistols and semiautomatic assault-style rifles sold at gun shows and online. Another provision would include a red flag law, creating pathways to get a gun away from a dangerous person — through filing a petition with law enforcement or requesting an emergency hearing with a judge.

The Senate bill included funding for the changes, but left a vote on the underlying policies for another day.

Senate Minority Leader Mark Johnson, R-East Grand Forks, framed a vote for the public safety bill as a vote for new gun restrictions. Johnson said he expects the DFL to "load up" the House bill with gun measures that would be included in a conference committee report and returned to the Senate for an up-or-down vote on the full package, meaning they couldn't be removed.

To that prospect, Latz said, "We still need 34 votes." The DFL controls the Senate by a one-vote margin. Republicans haven't indicated a willingness to adopt new gun safety provisions and it's unclear whether all Senate Democrats would support them.

Also in the bill, Latz described spending on civil legal services and funding for the courts to clear the backlog remaining from COVID-19 delays. Latz noted the bill creates a new Office of Missing and Murdered Black Women and Girls and offers a reward fund for the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Relatives Office.

The bill would have the state take over funding sexual assault exams from counties, speeding the process of evaluating rape kits.

During the floor debate, Limmer asked Latz to explain changes proposed in the bill for the Board of Pardons. Latz said it would create a broader Clemency Review Board to review requests for pardons and submit them to the board, which consists of the governor, attorney general and chief justice of the state Supreme Court.

The bill would remove the requirement that the board vote be unanimous; only two of the three members would be needed to approve a pardon.

Limmer also asked Latz about a provision that would help inmates reduce their sentences by half, rather than a third under current law, if they participate in job training or addiction or mental health treatment. Latz said the change has been in the pipeline since 2019 and would bring Minnesota in line with three dozen other states.

"Incentive is a very powerful motivator," Latz said, likening it to capitalism. He noted that 95% of people incarcerated will eventually be released. "We have a choice: We can do little or nothing and release them back into the community perhaps as dangerous or more dangerous" or the state can support them so they're capable of holding a job and are less likely to commit new offenses, he said.

Limmer said 7,400 of the state's 8,000 inmates would be eligible for early release under the program. "I'm a little concerned about that in light of the rising crime rate that we've experienced in recent years," he said. It was this program he likened to the "Get Out Of Jail Free" card in the board game Monopoly.

Latz countered that under current law, the 7,400 inmates will automatically be released whether or not they participated in training or treatment programs. "I would suggest it's the most incorrigible offenders who need this the most," he said.

As for rising crime, Latz said that's a national trend related to COVID-19, not unique to Minnesota. He also asserted that the past six years of Senate GOP leadership failed to decrease crime. "We need something new and better in Minnesota," Latz said.

Latz also disputed the Monopoly reference with a string of rhetorical questions, including, "How is it free if you have to go to treatment to qualify for it? If you have to get your GED to qualify for it?"

He responded by saying, "That's not free. It's earned by their sweat and their energy and their time."

Limmer offered an amendment to strip the provision from the bill, but it failed on a party-line vote.

Staff writer Jessie Van Berkel contributed to this report.