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State's top DFLers call on Rep. Thompson to resign after past domestic abuse allegations publicized

Saint Paul Pioneer Press - 7/17/2021

Jul. 17—Gov. Tim Walz and Minnesota House of Representatives DFL leaders on Saturday called for fellow Democrat state Rep. John Thompson of St. Paul to resign after past reports of domestic abuse allegations were publicized.

House Republicans have prepared ethics complaints they plan to file Monday, if Thompson doesn't resign, according to a spokesperson.

After details of the past allegations of domestic abuse concerning Thompson were publicized Friday, the state's top Democrats issued statements on Saturday afternoon.

"The alleged acts of violence against multiple women outlined in these reports are serious and deeply disturbing," Walz said in the statement. "Minnesotans deserve representatives of the highest moral character, who uphold our shared values. Representative Thompson can no longer effectively be that leader and he should immediately resign."

Thompson couldn't immediately be reached for comment on Saturday; no one answered the door at a St. Paul address registered to him. His attorney, Jordan Kushner, said he hadn't talked to Thompson on Saturday about the calls for his resignation.

"It shows how when push comes to shove, the Democratic establishment will cater to law enforcement interests over those struggling for justice," Kushner said.

FOX 9 reported Friday about four cases of domestic violence with allegations from police reports dating from 2003 to 2009.

Prosecutors charged Thompson with misdemeanor domestic assault in 2004 and 2006 in Dakota and Washington counties; they were dismissed when he pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct. After a 2003 domestic assault allegation in Wisconsin, Thompson pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct and resisting or obstructing an officer.

"They are false allegations," Kushner said Saturday. "He was not found guilty of any of them. ... It's a shame the DFL leadership does not believe in due process."

UNDER SCRUTINY SINCE TRAFFIC STOP

Thompson, who represents St. Paul'sEast Side and was elected in November, has been the subject of scrutiny since a July 4 traffic stop in St. Paul. An officer pulled him over for driving a vehicle without a front license plate and cited him for driving after his Minnesota driving privileges were suspended.

Two days later, Thompson was speaking publicly at a memorial that marked five years since his friend, Philando Castile, was fatally shot by a St. Anthony police officer during a traffic stop, when he said, "You can still get driving-while-Black tickets in the state — as a matter of fact, in St. Paul. Let's just call this what it is."

After the Pioneer Press and other media outlets covered Thompson's traffic stop on July 8, St. Paul Police Chief Todd Axtell said the traffic stop "had absolutely nothing to do with the driver's race. What it did involve was a public servant doing what the community asks of him."

Thompson presented a Wisconsin driver's license during the traffic stop, which has led to questions about the legality of him having an out-of-state license as a Minnesota elected official. He said in a Monday statement that he has lived and worked in St. Paul for many years.

The attention led many in the media and political circles to scour public records to determine where Thompson lived over the years. Many searches of address records lead to court and police information. While it had been previously reported that Thompson has had run-ins with the law, the detailed allegations by women who said Thompson abused them were not widely known or reported until FOX 9 published its report. It proved to be a game-changer for some DFL leaders.

A group of Black community leaders held a press conference on Wednesday to support Thompson after his traffic stop. Two of the people who spoke out could not be reached for comment on Saturday.

WHAT LEADERS SAID SATURDAY

On Saturday, Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman and Majority Leader Ryan Winkler, along with DFL Party Chairman Ken Martin, issued statements calling on Thompson to resign.

"As leaders of the Minnesota House of Representatives we take allegations of misconduct of staff and members very seriously," Hortman and Winkler said. "The recent reports concerning Representative John Thompson's actions are deeply troubling. Representative Thompson ran for office to advance progressive policies, but his recent actions, and unacceptable reports of abuse and misconduct, have become an impediment to that work."

It's unclear how much — if any — details of the allegations against Thompson anyone in the DFL knew. The Pioneer Press reported in October that he'd been charged with domestic assault and convicted of other misdemeanors.

Typically, local political units vet candidates in races that aren't competitive against the other party, and Thompson's District 67A is an overwhelmingly DFL seat.

Martin said he knew none of the allegations against Thompson until recently reported in the news. But he wishes he had, he said Saturday.

"As a survivor of domestic abuse myself, I have no tolerance for any man who treats a woman that way," he said. "I wish I had known this a year ago. I would have asked him to resign back then."

Senate Majority Leader Paul Gazelka, the state's top Republican, wrote on Twitter of Walz's call for Thompson's resignation, "It's about time. Threatening to burn down Hugo and yelling at children, or holding an out-of-state drivers license and disparaging law enforcement should have been enough on its own. Better late than never, but that's the leadership we expect from Walz."

Last summer, at a demonstration outside then-Minneapolis police union president Bob Kroll's home in Hugo, Thompson referred to Minneapolis police responding to a call about George Floyd allegedly using a fake $20 bill, which ended with Officer Derek Chauvin killing Floyd. Protests and violence broke out afterward.

"This whole (expletive) state burned down for 20 (expletive) dollars," Thompson said into a microphone on Kroll's street. "You think we give a (expletive) about burning Hugo down?"

U.S. Rep. Betty McCollum, who represents St. Paul in Congress, joined in the calls Saturday, urging Thompson to "immediately resign." In a statement, McCollum said, "The KMSP-TV report revealing four past incidents of violence against women by State Rep. John Thompson is intolerable. These very serious allegations undermine Mr. Thompson's credibility, making it impossible for him to serve his constituents with the effectiveness and dignity they deserve."

CURRENTLY ON TRIAL FOR MISDEMEANORS

Thompson is currently on trial in Hennepin County in a misdemeanor case from November 2019, before he was a state representative. He is accused of trespassing and obstructing legal process at North Memorial Health Hospital.

Thompson was part of a large group of people that congregated at the Robbinsdale hospital, where a close family friend of his was admitted following a suicide attempt, according to court documents.

News reports at the time described the scene as chaotic with two people fighting and others pounding on doors and banging on windows trying to gain access to locked rooms.

When told by an officer to calm down, Thompson replied, "Would you be calm if security surrounded you like you was a criminal?"

The officer responded, "I wouldn't be screaming and shouting ... you're screaming and shouting like an idiot." To which Thompson replied, "You're an idiot." He was then arrested.

Dave Orrick contributed to this report.

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