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The white snow flew and the red ink grew as
2010 drew to a close in Minnesota, but the blizzard that brought
down the Metrodome roof and the projection of a daunting $6.2
billion state deficit were just two of the year's most notable
stories.

      The state also had its second straight major election recount, a
Republican takeover of the Legislature, sudden freedom for a man
who blamed his Toyota for a crash that killed three people, and a
$50 million settlement for victims of the Minneapolis bridge
collapse.

started with the state government sweating a multi-billion-dollar deficit

 and ended that way, too. In January,
Gov. Tim Pawlenty was asking the state Supreme Court to quickly
rule whether he acted properly in cutting the budget by $2.7
billion after an impasse with the DFL-controlled Legislature.


      In May, the court ruled Pawlenty's cuts unconstitutional. With
time running out, the Legislature and Pawlenty found a solution
that included withholding more than $1 billion from schools. But
that won't be much help going into the next session, when the new
crop of leaders will face a deficit projected at $6.2 billion.


      At the head of the class will be Gov.-elect Mark Dayton, who
will lead the first Democratic administration in 20 years. His slim
victory over Republican Tom Emmer, confirmed by a 

, was an
aberration as Republicans swept into office throughout the state on
Nov. 2.


      The party tapped into voters' frustrations with budget deficits
and the sluggish economic recovery at both the state and federal
levels. Now the next Minnesota House and Senate will be 


      It will also be the first time in 60 years that the Iron Range
doesn't send a Democrat to the U.S. House. Republican newcomer Chip
Cravaack 

, the House
transportation chairman, in November's biggest upset.


      In the state's courtrooms, two of the largest business scandals
in recent state history ground toward resolution.


      In the $3.7 billion Ponzi scheme that 

, the woman who blew the whistle on him - Deanna
Coleman- got one year in prison while Robert White, who admitted
forging 10,000 documents in the plot, got five years.


      Former auto mogul Denny Hecker was charged with cheating an auto
financing company and other commercial lenders out of millions of
dollars. In September, he 

 in federal court to two
fraud-related counts and faces 10 years in prison. He had already
filed for bankruptcy.


      Former Minneapolis police officer turned robber Timothy Carson,
29, went to prison. Koua Fong Lee, 32, of St. Paul, walked out of
one.


      Carson pleaded guilty to a string of robberies and attempted
robberies in Minneapolis and its suburbs over three weeks. Carson's
attorney said the father of two was overwhelmed by financial
problems, a sick daughter and anxiety. Carson was 

 after spending more than 2½ years in
prison because a Ramsey County jury didn't believe he had tried to
stop his Toyota from crashing into another vehicle, killing three
people in 2006. Lee had been sentenced to eight years, but he got a
new trial in the wake of Toyota's well publicized problems with
sudden acceleration in some models.


      The courts also saw a settlement in the 2007 Interstate 35W
bridge collapse in Minneapolis that killed 13 people and injured
145. Engineering firm URS 

 to settle scores of lawsuits brought by survivors and the families of
those killed. The settlement resolved the last major piece of
litigation brought by victims.


      In June, it looked like there might be a break in one of the
most infamous mysteries in state history, the 1989 abduction of
11-year-old Jacob Wetterling. Law enforcement officers carrying
search warrants converged on a St. Joseph farm and started digging.
But in September, Stearns County Sheriff John Sanner announced
forensic tests on items taken from the farm revealed 

      Minneapolis remained the center of a federal investigation into
recruiting by al-Shabab, a terrorist group in Somalia. The
years-long investigation saw new charges against several people in
2010, 

including two Rochester women who claim they were raising money for charity

. Prosecutors say the women were actively raising
money for al-Shabab. Similar charges of supporting terrorism were
also filed against suspects in Alabama, Missouri, and San Diego.


      Minnesota Somalis were stunned when a federal indictment in
Tennessee alleged 

Somali gangs from here were trafficking girls

 as young as 12 across state lines for sex.


      Minnesotans also watched courtrooms overseas. In Iran, hiker
Sarah Shourd, 31, was 

 on medical
grounds while the two men arrested with her, Shane Bauer, 27, and
Josh Fattal, 27, remain held on espionage charges. Their trial is
set for Feb. 6.


      In Rwanda, William Mitchell College of Law Peter Erlinder was
arrested in May after traveling to the African nation to help an
opposition leader who wanted to run for president. Erlinder was
detained for about a month on claims that he had minimized the
country's genocide in articles published on the Internet. Erlinder,
a defense attorney for the U.N. International Criminal Tribunal for
Rwanda, was 

eventually released because his health was deteriorating


      A Minneapolis businessman and three of his children were 

 when their small plane crashed in northwest Wyoming.
They were 40-year-old Luke Bucklin, his 14-year-old twins Nate and
Nick, and his 12-year-old son Noah. Federal investigators found
that shortly before the crash the pilot reported light turbulence
and that ice was forming on the plane.


      One tragedy defied explanation. An April fire in the apartments
above 

 killed six people. Authorities
said it didn't appear to be arson, but despite an extensive
investigation they couldn't determine the cause.


      Minnesota's fickle weather drove some of 2010's biggest stories.


      The Red River threatened a repeat of the record-breaking spring
floods of 2009, which caused $100 million in damage, but then


 without doing serious damage to homes
and other buildings. The scare focused attention on a diversion
project that would bring long-term peace of mind to the Fargo,
N.D.-Moorhead area. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is working
with local officials to find the best route to protect the cities
without harming downstream communities.

led the nation with 145 tornado touchdowns in 2010

,
according to the National Weather Service. On June 17 alone, dozens
of tornados hit the state, killing three people, injuring 45 and
causing extensive property damage.


      It seemed that just as tornado season ended, the 

.
Minneapolis struggled through its snowiest December on record: 33.4
inches, including a Dec. 10-11 dump of more than 17 inches that
earned nicknames like 

bring down the fabric roof of the Metrodome

,
providing a painful metaphor for the collapse of the 2010 Minnesota
Vikings. The team started with another dramatic entrance by
quarterback Brett Favre and Super Bowl dreams - but injuries and
ineptitude led to coach 

 and the team
stumbled toward last place in the division. One highlight for fans:
an 

 at the University of Minnesota's
TCF Bank Stadium that brought back memories of the '70s squads that
dominated at the Met.


      The Vikings actually wound up losing more games to weather than
the Twins, who opened their sparkling new Target Field to record
attendance of more than 3.2 million fans. The Twins went on to a


 - and another early playoff exit at the hands of the
New York Yankees.

Chris Williams

Author

The white snow flew and the red ink grew as
2010 drew to a close in Minnesota, but the blizzard that brought
down the Metrodome roof and the projection of a daunting $6.2
billion state deficit were just two of the year's most notable
stories.


Politics and red ink dominate 2010 year in news

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