Sen. Nicole Mitchell convicted on both counts in burglary trial

DETROIT LAKES, MINN. - Following three days of emotional testimony, jurors found state Sen. Nicole Mitchell guilty Friday of first-degree burglary and felony possession of burglary tools in connection with the break-in at her stepmother’s home last spring.

Mitchell showed no outward emotion as Chief Judge Michael Fritz read the guilty verdicts. She sat with her hands in her lap and glanced over at the jury, which had deliberated for three hours.

She will not be automatically expelled from the Minnesota Senate due to the conviction, but her Senate colleagues could vote to remove her from the chamber when the Legislature is in session if she doesn’t resign on her own accord.

Ahead of the verdict, Mitchell, a Democrat, had told colleagues she intended to resign if found guilty, said Senate Majority Leader Erin Murphy, DFL-St. Paul, in a statement. “I expect her to follow through on that pledge,” Murphy said.

DFL Gov. Tim Walz also expected Mitchell to resign after she was found guilty, according to the governor’s office, and he’s expected to call a special election if the seat becomes vacant.

If Mitchell does leave office, the Minnesota Senate will be deadlocked 33-33 pending that special election. The southwest metro district she represents has leaned solidly Democrat in recent elections, with Mitchell winning almost 59% of the vote in 2022.

While Mitchell awaits sentencing, prosecutors wanted her handcuffed and jailed, but defense attorneys argued she was a public figure who posed no flight risk or threat to public safety. Fritz agreed and Mitchell slipped out a back door of the courtroom to avoid reporters.

Nicole Mitchell broke into her stepmother’s Detroit Lakes home about 4:45 a.m. April 22, 2024, later telling police she was there to retrieve mementos of her late father.

On the witness stand, Nicole Mitchell said she was there to check on Carol Mitchell, who has Alzheimer’s disease, and had no intention of stealing anything. She claimed her original statements to the police were lies.

Defense attorney Dane DeKrey said he plans to appeal the verdict. Police body camera video and Nicole Mitchell’s initial statements to police were the biggest hurdles in this case, he said. Asked if it was a risk to have his client testify, DeKrey said with that kind of video evidence, “you don’t have any chance to win a case unless you put your client on the stand.”

“Very few people get up in their defense and testify for that many hours, subject themselves to cross-examination, are willing to have their lives looked at, peered into that way.

“I’m proud of her. She will be fine. She’s a strong human being no matter this verdict,” DeKrey said.

“There are arguments for mercy,” he said, adding it’s possible Mitchell could avoid serving jail time.

DeKrey said he didn’t think politics had anything to do with the verdict, but the jury’s ruling could affect Mitchell’s political career. DFL and GOP leaders in the Senate said Friday they expected her to resign now. Democrats control the chamber by a single vote. Her attorneys wouldn’t comment on whether she planned to step down.

McDonald, who filed the charges last April, urged jurors not to believe “the many lies of Nicole Mitchell,” while defense attorneys tasked them with finding any reasonable doubt that the break-in was done to commit theft. Nicole Mitchell said if she had told the truth about why she was in Carol Mitchell’s house, that she was there out of concern for her stepmother’s welfare, Carol Mitchell would think she was putting her in a nursing home.

Defense attorney Bruce Ringstrom Jr., in his nearly hour-long closing argument Friday, said that his client is a veteran, legislator, mom, lawyer and daughter who wouldn’t throw away her entire life “for things she knew she was going to get anyway.”

He said Nicole Mitchell visited her stepmother five times after her father died in March 2023 and could’ve taken any mementoes on those visits. She was promised a shirt and photos that were in the basement. Ringstrom said she could’ve taken them and left, but instead she went upstairs to check on Carol Mitchell.

“Who packs a freaking prybar just in case?” McDonald said to the jury.

Mitchell, 50, pleaded not guilty. Her attorney said she didn’t have permission to be in the home that morning and would have pleaded guilty to trespassing.

Carol Mitchell took the witness stand Tuesday and said she felt “extremely violated” by the break-in. She struggled to answer questions by prosecutors and defense attorneys, forgetting key dates and family members’ names.

The relationship between the two reached a breaking point a month before the incident, after Nicole Mitchell said her dad’s ashes were buried without her there to say goodbye.

Nicole Mitchell said she regretted what she had done, but she was worried for her stepmother.

Defense attorneys briefly questioned two witnesses Friday morning and rested their case. Proceedings broke for jury deliberation around 12:30 p.m.

The final witness called by the defense was Sgt. Jay Brody, of Mauston, Wisc. Nicole Mitchell was Brody’s commander. He testified that they frequently spoke about Carol Mitchell’s declining health.

“She expressed concern that Carol was displaying evidence of missing things, and she was worried about her wellbeing,” Brody said.

Nicole Mitchell resigned as a commander in the National Guard, she said in testimony. She said was asked to resign in light of the high-profile case.

Cindy Markey, one of Nicole Mitchell’s aunts and the sister of the late Roderick Mitchell, also testified Friday. Pressed by prosecutors, Markey said the relationship between Carol and Nicole Mitchell “has never been good since day one,” and that they were “two very strong-willed women who butted heads on everything.”

“Handcuffed and facing reality of her actions, the defendant made the following statement: ‘I’m just hoping this mistake won’t completely [expletive] up my life … My god … my military retirement,’” McDonald said, adding that she only cared about herself, not Carol Mitchell.