Latest news with #WinonaStateUniversity
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Yahoo
Man involved in shooting near Winona State University campus sentenced
Jun. 6—WINONA, Minn. — The Winona man involved in a shooting near Winona State University was sentenced to three years in prison. Cole Robert Cameron, 27, was charged with felony counts of first-degree assault with a dangerous weapon and intentional discharge of a firearm. The charges related to a shooting on Oct. 17, 2024, in a Winona apartment complex. He pleaded guilty on April 18 to a lesser charge of second-degree assault with a dangerous weapon. In exchange for his plea, the remaining charges would be dismissed as well as an assault charge filed in an earlier, separate case. On Thursday, June 5, Winona County District Judge Dwight Luhmann ordered Cameron to serve the presumptive sentence of 36 months, or three years, at the St. Cloud correctional facility. Cameron received 232 days of credit for time served. According to the criminal complaint, officers responded to an apartment building early in the morning on Oct. 17, 2024. Dispatch was informed that someone had been shot with a gun on the third floor of the building. Officers saw a witness leaning over the man who was shot. "I shot him," Cameron told police, according to the complaint. The witness told police the firearm was in his room and that he overheard Cameron and the man arguing in the hallway before the shooting, according to the complaint. The witness looked out of his apartment door and watched Cameron go back into his apartment. Cameron returned to the hallway with a black Beretta handgun, the criminal complaint said. The witness said Cameron told the man he would "pump him full of lead," according to the complaint. The witness heard Cameron tell the man to get away from him. "Do you want to get shot?" Cameron asked the man, the complaint said. According to the complaint, the witness tried to get the man to go back to his apartment, but he was unsuccessful. The witness began recording the audio of the argument on his phone. "It's loaded, hollow points, go back to your apartment now," Cameron said in the audio recording. "Do you want me to pull the trigger?" The man yelled back, "Pull it." A single gunshot was fired, the complaint said. The witness left their apartment and went back into the hallway, where he saw Cameron standing over the man who was shot, the complaint said. The witness told Cameron to put the gun away for law enforcement's safety. The witness then attempted to help the man who was shot. According to the complaint, officers obtained camera surveillance footage from the third floor of the building. Cameron can be heard trying to get the man to go back into his apartment. The man who was shot sounded "extremely intoxicated," the complaint said. The video captured Cameron walking backward down the hall with his right arm extended while pointing a dark-colored gun toward the man, the complaint said. "Due to the fact that the Ring camera is motion activated, the video does not capture the actual shooting," the complaint said. After the shooting, the man was seen lying on the floor, "moving slightly and moaning." Cameron was seen running from where the shooting occurred, the complaint said. The complaint said he was later seen leaving without the gun. According to a search warrant filed on Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, officers located a loaded Beretta 9mm handgun on the kitchen counter, three 9mm handgun magazines, boxed and loose ammunition, a gun lock and a black-colored cloth gun case. The complaint said the man who was shot was transported by ambulance to the emergency room. Doctors told the officers he was in severe condition. The man was then airlifted to a La Crosse, Wisconsin, hospital for further treatment. While Cameron was being transported to Winona County Jail, he made "spontaneous statements" about how the man who was shot kept following him and "blocked his way home," the complaint said. Cameron said he told the man to go back into his apartment and that he "did not want to do this." At the jail, Cameron provided a preliminary breath test sample of 0.20% BAC, according to the complaint.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Yahoo
Man involved in shooting near Winona State University campus sentenced
Jun. 6—WINONA, Minn. — The Winona man involved in a shooting near Winona State University was sentenced to three years in prison. Cole Robert Cameron, 27, was charged with felony counts of first-degree assault with a dangerous weapon and intentional discharge of a firearm. The charges related to a shooting on Oct. 17, 2024, in a Winona apartment complex. He pleaded guilty on April 18 to a lesser charge of second-degree assault with a dangerous weapon. In exchange for his plea, the remaining charges would be dismissed as well as an assault charge filed in an earlier, separate case. On Thursday, June 5, Winona County District Judge Dwight Luhmann ordered Cameron to serve the presumptive sentence of 36 months, or three years, at the St. Cloud correctional facility. Cameron received 232 days of credit for time served. According to the criminal complaint, officers responded to an apartment building early in the morning on Oct. 17, 2024. Dispatch was informed that someone had been shot with a gun on the third floor of the building. Officers saw a witness leaning over the man who was shot. "I shot him," Cameron told police, according to the complaint. The witness told police the firearm was in his room and that he overheard Cameron and the man arguing in the hallway before the shooting, according to the complaint. The witness looked out of his apartment door and watched Cameron go back into his apartment. Cameron returned to the hallway with a black Beretta handgun, the criminal complaint said. The witness said Cameron told the man he would "pump him full of lead," according to the complaint. The witness heard Cameron tell the man to get away from him. "Do you want to get shot?" Cameron asked the man, the complaint said. According to the complaint, the witness tried to get the man to go back to his apartment, but he was unsuccessful. The witness began recording the audio of the argument on his phone. "It's loaded, hollow points, go back to your apartment now," Cameron said in the audio recording. "Do you want me to pull the trigger?" The man yelled back, "Pull it." A single gunshot was fired, the complaint said. The witness left their apartment and went back into the hallway, where he saw Cameron standing over the man who was shot, the complaint said. The witness told Cameron to put the gun away for law enforcement's safety. The witness then attempted to help the man who was shot. According to the complaint, officers obtained camera surveillance footage from the third floor of the building. Cameron can be heard trying to get the man to go back into his apartment. The man who was shot sounded "extremely intoxicated," the complaint said. The video captured Cameron walking backward down the hall with his right arm extended while pointing a dark-colored gun toward the man, the complaint said. "Due to the fact that the Ring camera is motion activated, the video does not capture the actual shooting," the complaint said. After the shooting, the man was seen lying on the floor, "moving slightly and moaning." Cameron was seen running from where the shooting occurred, the complaint said. The complaint said he was later seen leaving without the gun. According to a search warrant filed on Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, officers located a loaded Beretta 9mm handgun on the kitchen counter, three 9mm handgun magazines, boxed and loose ammunition, a gun lock and a black-colored cloth gun case. The complaint said the man who was shot was transported by ambulance to the emergency room. Doctors told the officers he was in severe condition. The man was then airlifted to a La Crosse, Wisconsin, hospital for further treatment. While Cameron was being transported to Winona County Jail, he made "spontaneous statements" about how the man who was shot kept following him and "blocked his way home," the complaint said. Cameron said he told the man to go back into his apartment and that he "did not want to do this." At the jail, Cameron provided a preliminary breath test sample of 0.20% BAC, according to the complaint.
Yahoo
25-04-2025
- Yahoo
Arrest in 'Baby Angel' case stuns those who know the Winona mother of 2
Apr. 24—WINONA, Minn. — The announcement of charges filed in Winona's "Baby Angel" cold case has stunned people familiar with the woman in custody. Jennifer Baechle, 43, a Winona mother of two and Winona State graduate known for supporting performing arts and volunteering at local music festivals and fundraisers, faces two counts of second-degree manslaughter related to the death of an infant in 2011. She was arrested on Thursday morning. The charges were announced Thursday, April 24, 2025. Baechle is a longtime resident of Winona and a graduate of WSU. She has been married since 2016, has two children and is involved in the community, volunteering her time with nonprofits, including cooking for a church fundraiser for the Winona Immigration Network, people who know Baechle said. Retired Winona County Sheriff Dave Brand, who led the initial investigation into the infant's death, said it isn't the profile of a suspect he expected. "I'm kind of surprised, and I'm wondering why she had to do what she did, you know, and now she's got a couple of kids," he said. Baechle is accused of placing her newborn baby in a tote bag along with angel figurines and ornaments, incense and other items and placing the bag in the Mississippi River in 2011. More than 150 Winona-area community members attended a funeral for the infant shortly after she was found in September 2011. Community donations funded a grave marker and a bank account Brand opened continues to fund the ongoing efforts to maintain the grave and provide fresh flowers for the marker. "For more than 13 years, Baby Angel's tragic death has weighed heavily on the hearts of this community," said Winona County Sheriff Ron Ganrude. "We are grateful to be able to provide answers for this community and for Baby Angel." Baechle had also been an adjunct faculty member at Winona State University, where she graduated. She was teaching a class in the English department for spring semester 2025. On Thursday, the university announced Baechle was replaced by another faculty member who will teach the course for the remainder of the semester, according to a statement from WSU. "This is a shock to the Winona State University community, and our hearts go out to those involved," the statement said. After graduating from WSU, she taught English and lived abroad in Kazakhstan from 2008 to 2010, trained teachers there and returned to Winona in December 2010, according to U.S. Peace Corps records. According to a search warrant filed in Winona County, sheriff's deputies investigating the death of the infant spoke with Baechle's family, who said they had no personal contact with Baechle in 2011. Baechle had been living in her van in the Winona area that year, they told investigators. Her family members also recognized items found with the infant in the bag and told investigators that Baechle collected angels and that they gave her an angel ornament every Christmas. Baechle was also a volunteer board member with the Bluff Country Coop in Winona, serving as an officer on the board through 2024. Baechle was a fixture at live music and performing arts events in the community befriending musicians and organizers. She would volunteer her time at Winona area music festivals. People familiar with Baechle through music and the arts declined to speak on the record about Baechle. However, a common word among people who know her was "stunned" about the news.
Yahoo
07-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Winona State loses $1.1M federal grant for civic engagement, public service
Winona State University has lost a $1.1 million grant from the United States Department of Defense that it was says was designed to promote civic engagement. The university received notice of the termination of the grant on Feb. 28, according to a WSU spokesperson. The letter references Code of Federal Regulations language that a federal award is subject to termination if the "award no longer effectuates the program goals or agency priorities." The grant is part of $80 million in federal funds cut by Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) announced earlier this week. The agency claims the funds slashed have been "wasted on programs that do not support [the Department of Defense's] core mission." A spokesperson for the university tells Bring Me The News the funds were intended to form a Civic Center unit that promotes engagement "among students, faculty, local government entities in the region, and nonprofit organizations." The university provided the following official statement regarding the terminated grant: "This grant represented a significant investment in student learning and regional community support for civic engagement, and we are disappointed the award has been terminated. "We plan to assess the progress and investments made to date in the Civic Center project and its stated goals and examine how we might continue to lead this work in partnership with our students and others in our surrounding communities." Winona State initially was awarded the grant in August 2024 by the Biden administration. The Civic Center held a series of events titled "Promoting Civility Through Dialogue" and launched an internship program to provide hands-on work experience for students from various majors. It also partnered with SE MN Together, a group of current and former local government administrators and employees, educators and leaders of nonprofit organizations who "work to strengthen regional connections and build local capacity to solve their communities' issues."A spokesperson says a speaker series was planned this spring on civic engagement, civility and public service. Community dialogues were also in the works with topics ranging from transportation coordination, building welcoming and inclusive communities, affordable housing and cooperation on regional development. "Although we are deeply disappointed, we are determined to keep moving forward. The purpose of the Civic Center is to bring students and the community together to solve public issues, and we will continue to do that in whatever capacity is available to us," the WSU Civic Center said on Facebook.
Yahoo
07-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Feds rescind grant toward Winona State civic engagement initiative
Mar. 6—WINONA, Minn. — A federal grant to fund a program to promote civic engagement among Winona State University students has been terminated, university officials say. A $1.1 million Department of Defense million grant announced in August 2024 was earmarked to go toward an initiative to promote understanding of civic and nonprofit organizations called the Civic Center. On Friday, Feb. 28, 2025, Winona State officials received a notice of termination of the grant from the Department of Defense. The notice referenced a Code of Federal Regulations language that indicates a federal award may be terminated if the "award no longer effectuates the program goals or agency priorities." The Civic Center, established in fall 2024, was created by faculty and university leaders to introduce students and faculty to local government entities and nonprofits to foster civic engagement. It kicked off with a series of events called "Promoting Civility Through Dialogue." Civic Center leaders had scheduled a speaker series on civic engagement, civility and public service. They had planned dialogues and discussion events on topics including building welcoming and inclusive communities, transportation coordination, affordable housing, and cooperation on regional development, WSU officials said. "This grant represented a significant investment in student learning and regional community support for civic engagement, and we are disappointed the award has been terminated," an official statement from the university said. The statement continued that the initiative will continue in whatever capacity the school is able to do so. "The purpose of the Civic Center is to bring students and the community together to solve public issues, and we will continue to do that in whatever capacity is available to us," it said.
