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AG Ellison sues large dairy farm for millions in unpaid wages

ST. PAUL — Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison filed a lawsuit against a large dairy operation Monday alleging at least $3 million in unpaid wages to vulnerable workers in addition to other allegations. The lawsuit was filed in Stearns County District Court against Evergreen Acres Dairy, Evergreen Estates, Morgan Feedlots, and dairy operation owners Keith Schaefer and Megan Hill. It was alleged workers were illegally charged rent for substandard housing and worked in a culture of fear and violence to discourage reporting. Ellison alleges Evergreen systematically deprived its ...

What goes up must come down

SLEEPY EYE — Josh Palmer of Springfield said he and his family were so excited about the huge Holiday Lights In Motion display in Sportsmen’s Park about a decade ago and have been volunteering at the event since then. “My mom, day and sister came to see it in 2014 and just fell in love ...

Third-degree murder charge filed against Arlington man

GAYLORD — A third-degree murder charge was filed Jan. 3 in Sibley County Court against a 25-year-old Arlington man accused of selling pills containing fentanyl that caused the death of a 25-year-old Winthrop man last May. Unconditional bail for Erick Lee Alvarado was set at $200,000 cash or bond, $15,000 cash or $150,000 bond with conditions Jan. 4. A court hearing was set for 10:30 a.m. Jan. 18. According to court documents, Winthrop Police Officer Reed Mitchell was dispatched May 21 to 413 West 6th Street in Winthrop for an unresponsive male. At the scene, officer Mitchell ...

Changes and improvements planned for Courtland

There are changes and improvements coming to Courtland. The City Council worked on a variety of projects at their Thursday, January 4, meeting. Eric Hauser, representing Bolten and Menk, presented a revised 2024 Street Improvement Project engineering report for Collin Drive. This replaces the report presented at last month’s council meeting. The estimated cost is $510,800 which is lower than the initial estimated cost of $530,000. Those estimates do not include the costs for water and sewer services which will be assessed directly to property owners. Hauser recommends a five-tier ...

Highway 14 completion the top local news story in 2023

NEW ULM — For decades, residents of New Ulm and the surrounding area have dreamed of having a safer Highway 14 and in 2023 that dream came true. On Nov. 22, two days before Thanksgiving, the four-lane Highway 14 expansion between New Ulm and Nicollet opened to the public. This stretch of ...