For Minnesotans , the 2020 riots are still fresh in our memories. We watched in horror as our cities burned and a police precinct was turned into a pile of ashes and rubble, all while our so-called leaders sat on their hands. The ensuing crime surge continues to be a daily reminder of the problem created by feckless politicians who threw gasoline on the fire.
One of those politicians was Vice President Kamala Harris.
Harris isn’t a Minnesotan, but that didn’t stop her from taking the side of the rioters and criminals who were destroying the Twin Cities.
Instead of calling for peace, Harris threw her support behind the rioters by soliciting money for the Minnesota Freedom Fund, an organization that posts bail for criminals, including murderers, rapists, and drug traffickers.
Harris tweeted at the time , “If you’re able to, chip in now to the @MNFreedomFund to help post bail for those protesting on the ground in Minnesota.”
Through her advocacy, Harris helped the Minnesota Freedom Fund raise $35 million in just a few weeks to go toward putting violent criminals back into our communities.
One such example is George Howard, who was in jail on a domestic assault charge when the Minnesota Freedom Fund bailed him out. Not even three weeks later, Howard shot and killed a man in a road rage incident.
Or there is repeat felon Shawn Tillman, who was in jail for an indecent exposure charge when the Minnesota Freedom Fund posted his bail. Tillman then went on to murder a man at a St. Paul light rail station.
One of the most damning examples of the Minnesota Freedom Funds’s misguided mission, and its affiliation to Democrat politicians, is the case of Myron Burrell. Burrell, a Bloods gang member, was sentenced to life in prison for shooting and killing 11-year-old Tyesha Edwards as she sat doing homework at her kitchen table. Burrell had tried to shoot a rival gang member but killed Edwards in the crossfire. Outrageously, Gov. Tim Walz (D-MN) and Attorney General Keith Ellison commuted his sentence.
After having been released from prison, Burrell was caught with an illegal gun and drugs. Even though the crime happened in Hennepin County, the case had to be referred to Dakota County because of “conflict bias.” What conflict of interest could that be, you ask? Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty had hired Burrell, a convicted felon, to work on her election campaign in 2022.
The Minnesota Freedom Fund came to Burrell’s rescue and posted bail in that case.
But that’s not where Burrell’s story ends. Not even a year later, Burrell got caught again, this time with meth and $60,000 of drug money. Two felony cases in less than a year, but the Minnesota Freedom Fund thought he deserved to be back on the streets.
There are countless more examples of hardened criminals that are back terrorizing our communities thanks to the work of the Minnesota Freedom Fund. And it’s only possible because of the money Harris raised. According to the Washington Post , prior to the $35 million windfall Harris helped orchestrate, the Minnesota Freedom Fund was working with a much smaller budget, raising just $100,000 in 2018, according to tax records.
Worse yet, the fundraising link Harris first shared in 2020 continues to accept money today.
This whole situation is personally infuriating for me. As a federal prosecutor, I helped go after violent criminals and hold them accountable for their actions, including the rioters of 2020. I proudly charged arsonists who burned down a Minnesota business and rioters who threw Molotov cocktails into a south metro courthouse. I also investigated and prosecuted members of Burrell’s gang, the Bloods, in Minneapolis. The first step to solving our crime problem is cracking down on criminals, not freeing them.
Minnesotans are sick and tired of criminals facing no consequences for their actions. The Minnesota Freedom Fund is part of the problem, and so is Kamala Harris.
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Joe Teirab, U.S. Marine and former federal prosecutor, is the Republican candidate for Congress in Minnesota’s 2nd Congressional District.
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