Angie Craig on the Laken Riley Act and Cedrick Frazier on Equity in the Legal System. Plus, MN's Office of Restorative Practices

This is CityCast Twin Cities. I'm Sean McPherson, and here's what the cities are talking about. Denzel, we don't have much summer left, and I need help with my soundtrack. If you could only listen to one artist while lounging at the beach, who would you be listening to? Well, if I had to listen to music, which, let's be clear, I don't actually like music at the beach. I like just the sounds of the beach. I grew up near ocean beaches, the waves, wind, everything. But if I had to choose someone's the songography to listen to, it's Beyonce. That is Denzel Beelan, an NPR newsroom coordinator, a citycast contributor. And somebody whose answer would make you think he, like, grew up in San Diego. You grew up by the ocean beaches in Seattle, which are just, they're loud. I feel like there's whales everywhere. I understand there's a soundtrack. But some of us might need a little bit of music supporting our beach time. So Alicia, Alicia Nichols, the leader of Minnesota's Office of Restorative Practices, what would you listen to while lounging at the beach? What would I listen to? Well, Denzel, I knew we were going to be connected because I absolutely, I'm the same way. If I'm at the beach, I want it to be quiet, I want to hear the ocean waves. But if I absolutely had to choose, it would be my girl Rihanna all day long every day. It would absolutely be hands down Rihanna. The only thing better than listening to Rihanna is listening to Ocean Waves. I agree with you. She is a spectacular artist. I am with you on that. Now, in today's episode, we are going to talk about restorative practices and how they might turn the tide on gun violence in our state. We're also going to catch up with two folks who are vying for political office who have primaries coming up tomorrow. We'll be chatting with Representative Angie Craig, who's running for U.S. Senator and Cedric Frazier, who is running for Hennepin County Attorney.

Now, Alicia, we're here to talk about the Office of Restortive Practices, which you are the leader of. And what your office does, in short, is funds and coordinates restorative approaches across pretrial diversion, juvenile justice, school programming, and community violence prevention. Wildly important work. And I know it's work you're very passionate about. Alicia Nichols, thank you very much for joining us today on Citicast. Thank you so much for having me. I'm so happy to be here. Now, Alicia, this is something that I wasn't actually. I didn't know this existed. So I was wondering if you could tell me about the work that you do and why it matters specifically to Minnesota. I would be happy to. And I think before we start about talking about the work of the office, I think it's important to talk about what problem it is that we're trying to solve and what restorative practices is. And so we know that conflict is inevitable. We know that harm is happening in our communities. And we also know that systems tend to respond to harm after instead of investing. and strategies before harm happens. So restorative practices are ways of building relationship and strengthening relationship. It's about responding to conflict and wrongdoing before it happens, but also after it happens. And it demands from us high levels of accountability, but a real focus on the prevention of future harm. And that can only be done if we have opportunities for true repair to happen and then opportunities for healing. So at the office, as you've said, we do that work by connecting with community partners, community-based nonprofits, with justice system partners, community members themselves, victims of crime, those who have caused significant harms and have since made amends and are looking at how do they work within their communities to continue to help others reduce the likelihood of them escalating to violence. And so these are investments that we've made in the community because we know that strengthening relations. and having strong relationships is essential. It's the strongest protective factor we actually have to the likelihood of experiencing violence and violent behavior. And so we've chosen very intentionally to make these investments to keep our communities safer. Alicia Nichols, just to show my cards, I believe in this work, and I believe it's very valuable work. But I think a lot of people, when they hear some of these words, especially restorative justice, they might. think about sort of the loss of the entire justice system that we might know is the mainstream justice system. So there might be a sense of is Alicia Nichols in her office one step away from prison abolition, is one step away from an absence of law enforcement, things like this. But actually, you do a lot of work with these other stakeholders in the justice system. So I really want to understand about how a restorative approach to gun violence might actually look. In a case of gun violence occurring, when you step in, what happens and how do you relate to the other parts of the, you know, justice world?

Absolutely. Restorative practices and approaches have been around for generations. They have been particularly used in BIPAC and indigenous communities. There is a strong restorative justice and restorative practices community in Minnesota, which is why, again, we've chosen to make such an investment. Minnesota is often looked to as the North Star around implementation and approaches to restorative practices. Restorative practices, it's not going to solve gun violence on its own. But what it does do and what it can do is it can help prevent violence by addressing it before it even escalates. What we know is that many acts of violence, especially with young people, begin with unresolved conflict, with broken relationships and a sense of disconnection, which can turn into retaliation. So restorative practices, what it does is it helps people build the communication skills. to take accountability, to look at repair and healing in a way that it allows us for violence to become less likely. Accountability should not equate to how severe is the punishment or how much does somebody suffer. It should really be about what is the acknowledgement of accountability and wrongdoing and harm and how is one looking to repair, make amends, but also get to the root causes of what that violence is, which is why it does take that ecosystem, Sean, of partners of working with law enforcement, with working with social services and mental health providers, those who don't have. access to housing or financial or economic stability need accesses to resources and support if we're going to talk about really having strategies that are going to reduce and prevent gun violence from happening. Have you ever sat two people side by side, one who shot the other and tried to create a piece between these two people? Is somebody from your staff done that? Does it get that personal? Absolutely. So just to be clear, well, the Office of Restorative Practices, we're not practitioners anymore, right? We're not providing any of those direct services. But yes, I have done those things. I used to oversee restorative justice programming at the Minnesota Department of Corrections. And for several years, worked with victims of violent crime, oftentimes of gun violence crime and surviving family members of homicide, who said, I have questions. The justice system alone sending someone to appear. of confinement and incarceration didn't tell me X, Y, or Z. I have additional questions. I have needs. I want to know, is this going to happen again? Is this person remorseful? What are they going to do during that period of confinement or separation to understand the root causes of why they've created and caused that harm in the first place so that they can move forward where they don't create that harm again? One of the The biggest takeaways I have from working with people who've been impacted by violent crime on both sides is this isn't about being weak on accountability or avoiding accountability. I think in these cases, accountability is actually more demanding because it's requiring the person who's caused harm, not to be accountable to a rule or to a law that was broken, but to the actual individual who was impacted. And it gives...

agency and voice to that victim, oftentimes for the first time, to be able to say, this is the impact of your actions. And what I have been so fortunate to witness, people who have chosen to engage after lots of preparation, I want to be clear, we don't just bring two people together the day of. There can be a year sometimes of preparation to understand what's going to happen when we bring two people face to face. What we want, I'm not asking for forgiveness. That isn't an expectation of restorative practices. What we're seeking is I'm looking to help and to walk with people, people who have been victimized, to help walk with them. to move them where the harm that they experience defines who they are. It will never go away. It's always going to be a part of their history. It's always a part of their story. But it doesn't have to define them. And it is the exact same for the person who has caused that harm. They are not the worst moment or the worst act. that they have committed. I believe that they are greater than that and that we need to tap in and provide resources and support, which we can do through restorative practices, to learn what is the true intervention? What is at the core? What do we absolutely need to change so that we can see a behavior change where someone moves from not being the act that they committed, but to being a contributing, thoughtful, safe member of our communities? And I noticed one of the words that you mentioned that really struck accord with me was intervention. And your office funds these community violence intervention groups. Would you be able to describe what are those groups? Are they like, you know, AA meetings type thing. Like, what is that? Sure. And it's really important to understand, too, that this work or this way of being these approaches can be used across the lifespan. So we use them, right? I have folks who are bringing kindergartners together and sitting in circle as they start their day every morning to build a sense of belonging and connection and community, right? And to build their conflict resolution skills and to see themselves as a part of a larger community. We also support programs that. are welcoming and reintegrating men and women who have served time, who've been incarcerated, welcoming them back into community, building those communication skills, those conflict resolution skills, but having a supportive network to be able to tap into, because conflict is inevitable, right? It's always going to happen. But if we have a group of trusted people in our lives that we can go to when we have the skills to communicate, That's what these programs are doing. They're creating a network and an ecosystem to reduce the likelihood of harm happening in the first place. Yeah. And I'm sure people ask you all the time. So does this even work these conversations, this work you're doing? And I just wanted to give you some space to share some of that evidence that you're like, oh.

That's why you have the job. Absolutely, absolutely. That's what everybody wants to know, right? Does this work? Yes, it works. We have a long history of utilizing restorative practices and approaches to respond to conflict. We know that these programs are successful or we wouldn't have made these investments. We still at the Office of Restorative Practices, we are still a new agency. And so we're still collecting long-term outcomes around the work that our grantees are doing. But again, because Minnesota has such a rich... history of restorative practices. We've seen really, really positive work and information and data coming out of places like Ramsey County, out of Yellow Medicine County, out of Carlton County, the city of Minneapolis has done some great work around juvenile diversion. So we have data to show that this works. We also know that investing in prevention. is more cost effective than it is to respond after harm has happened. And you mentioned community and this group effort that we're doing across our wonderful state. So I'm wondering what is one thing in average Minnesota could do in their own neighborhood to support this work? Absolutely. Know your neighbors. Go out and talk with your neighbors. The more connection and the sense of belonging we have with the community that we live in, the more care we provide to it. So if you could do anything at all, know your neighbors. Go for a while when you're out. Stop and talk. Get to know them. Go knock on the door. Introduce yourselves. Being in connection and relationship. Like I said, strong relationships. are the strongest protective factor that we have to whether or not we'll have any experience with violence or with violent behavior. And so know your neighbors. Get out and know what's going on in your neighborhood. Alicia Nichols, I am by nature a wildly petty person who I feel like I very much am like a deep down inside. I am not an eye for an eye person, but I'm like a you stole my cake. I steal your cake type of person. And actually the principles of restorative justice have been very influential in my own life in trying to actually take a different approach to conflict. be very minor conflict or very major conflict. And I am incredibly grateful that that is part of the offerings from the state of Minnesota. And frankly, I'm incredibly grateful that somebody is passionate about this work as you is at the helm of it. So I appreciate you taking time away from this work you love to talk with us. And thank you for being here on CityCast today as the director of Minnesota's Office of Restortive Practices. Thank you so much for having me and shedding a light on such important work. I really, really appreciate it. We'd love to hear from you. So many people in our community have been impacted by violence, including by gun violence. And if you have an experience with that or an experience with a restorative practice, we'd love to hear about it. Send us a text or leave us a voicemail on the CityCast Twin Cities hotline. That number is 612-217. We really love hearing from you, and we'd love to include your thoughts and experiences in an upcoming mailbag segment. There's more to discuss, but before we do that, we'll take a quick break.

We'd like to welcome on Representative Angie Craig, who is running for U.S. Senate. Now, the primary is tomorrow, and we're very excited to talk to every candidate that we can leading up to the big election in November. Representative Craig, we very much appreciate your time today. Thank you for joining us on CityCast Twin Cities. Great to be with you. Now, you're no stranger to serving constituents, of course, because you are a U.S. representative right now, but I want to ask, in your work in the Senate, if you were elected at that level, how would your work most tangibly impact the community you yourself live in? Well, look, as a U.S. Senator, I'm going to focus on really three things. How can we lower cost and create more opportunity for folks in my community? How can we pass legislation that keeps our community safe? And the third big area is Washington is broken. We have a systemic issue in Washington from campaign finance reform to... senators and Congress people being able to trade stocks. So those three big buckets are by priorities as a U.S. Senator and be happy to talk more about that, Sean. I think I agree with you to some extent that Washington is broken. And there's times where I feel like even we're doing plenty of the breaking ourselves locally at the community level. It's hard to have strong and resilient communities. Some of that comes from within and trying to figure out how to make those bonds stronger. But some of those. come from elected officials. And I'm trying to ask you, as an elected official, how could you help build more resilient communities all across Minnesota and, frankly, as a senator, all across the nation? Well, look, there are specific policy issues that as a U.S. Senator I can fight for that will help us build more resilient communities. And let me talk at the individual level first. You know, I grew up in several different mobile homes and several different mobile home parks. My mom was a single mom who at times relied on, you know, what was food stamps at the time, is snap now. Sometimes we didn't have health insurance in our own family. So when I think about building resiliency and creativity, creating economic opportunity. Look, I think people should be pissed off at Democrats and Republicans that the federal minimum wage is still $7.25. Why in the world hasn't either party prioritized bringing that up? As a U.S. Senator, I'm going to prioritize doubling the child tax credit in this country to at least $6,000 a year. Raising a kid in our country, choosing to have one has become way too expensive. The fact that the average individual first-time homebuyer is now 40 years old in our country, you know, we've got to dramatically increase the first-time homebuyer tax credit, but beyond that,

we've got to look at the systems that are in place. Why can't we build a greater supply of housing at a lower cost in this country, whether that's the permitting side or looking at some of the really fascinating stuff happening in modular housing these days? When I look across the spectrum here, these are building resiliency by creating economic opportunity. The other side of that is just being able to fight these asinine policies coming out of Republicans in the Trump administration right now from across the board tariffs that, by the way, the Supreme Court deemed illegal, but now they're returning the money. to the corporations, not to the people. You know, it's from tariffs to a war in Iran that had no strategic objective to begin with driving up costs for working families. And then the attacks on, you know, needy families themselves. The SNAP program I'm thinking about as the head of the Ag Committee, I... and responsible for fighting directly back on the Trump administration. There cuts, $187 billion in cuts to the SNAP program in our country. So building resiliency starts with creating economic opportunity for individuals. And to do that, though, you've got to be focused on broader things like how do we make sure that we have good schools, public schools for people to go to? Why isn't the federal government? providing the 40% you know towards special education that we promised in our country because when we don't we put more pressure on local school districts and on the state to do just that so building resiliency is about creating opportunity from an education perspective. And it's also taken on the big interest that are jacking up costs for people. And, you know, this is something that I've been focused on as a U.S. House member, certainly what I will be focused on as a U.S. Senator. And Representative Angie Craig, I align with a lot of what you just said. We don't know exactly how uphill your battle will be if you are elected to the U.S. Senate because we don't know who will hold the majority in the U.S. Senate. So truly some of the things you want to do are at loggerheads with what a lot of Republicans want to do. So if the Democrats are not in the majority. What common legislative ground do you think you can find with them to still get some things done even if you can't get everything done based on the balance of power?

Well, Sean, your point is really, really good. I mean, the only way we make progressive progress in our country is by winning, governing majorities. And the only way we do that is by making sure that the right people are running in the right seats and people who will win these elections. And, you know, I am 100% supportive of a big tent party in the Democratic Party. That's the only way we're going to have governing majorities as well. But I've served in the majority for four years. During that time, we passed the Inflation Reduction Act, which had some great legislation mine to cap the cost of insulin at $35 a month, make Medicare start negotiating its drug pricing. But I've also been in Congress for the four years that we were in the minority. And the only way you get anything done when you're in the minority is working across the aisle. That's the bottom line is, you know, I'm the kind of member of Congress and would be the kind of U.S. Senator who really thinks about you've got to know when to make a fist and metaphorically throw a punch at a policy. I won't say a person, but at Republicans, candidly. And you've got to know when to extend your hand and work across the aisle. That's what I did in passing a number of... you know, bills dealing with mental health resources in our community. I worked really hard on the topic of allowing Narcan to be available in our community because this is a really personal issue to me. My goddaughter is four years in recovery right now. You know, my own oldest son's birth mom. He's adopted, died of an accidental overdose. And so, you know, you meet people in the community. And, you know, these are, these are, if I can save one life, like, by working on an issue that republicans might be willing to work with us on where we can find agreement that's the kind of u.s senator i'm going to be but don't mistake that for one that's going to compromise our values because i will not compromise our values and i know when to metaphorically throw a punch Now, Angie Craig, you have a history back in the beginning of your career as a journalist, and I'm going to try to give you one of those beloved fluff questions and then get into some questions that more point at points of disagreement and tension that we've already heard in your race so far. But first, a little fluff. A day off in your district for Angie Craig, what's going to be on the itinerary if you find yourself surprisingly you open the calendar and there's just zilch on there? What are you doing? Well, that... isn't happening right now, but period, full stop. But I actually did negotiate a late start recently on my calendar. Late start was 9 a.m., just so we know, because my wife and I wanted to get outside and get on our e-bikes. We have not spent enough time outside during the summer because I've been all over the state working.

and running for the U.S. Senate. But you'll find me outside on some paved trail in Minnesota. We're so lucky to live in a state where we've invested in all these, you know, state parks and these trails. And you'll find me on, probably on my bike. And the reason I'm sounding like, you know, I can't bike on my own by saying I have an e-bike, it's actually opened up. sort of the state to us because, yeah, I can ride a bike for a long way, but we get to go so much further and see so much of this great state on an e-bike. What I would not recommend is being in a relationship where one person has an e-bike and the other person doesn't, which is what's true in my marriage right now. And my wife has an e-bike. And suddenly I was just like, well, for a minute, I looked at her back and then I haven't seen her for like the last three miles. So I'm glad that you and your wife are both on e-bikes. Okay, fluff out of the way. I want to ask about what so many people have been asking you about, which is this about-face about the Lake and Riley Act because you have said that you regretted the vote for the Lake and Riley Act. And I think critics have dismissed it as sort of just something where you change your position because of the office you're running for. When you're running just to represent the area you currently represent, it was a strategic, wise move to vote for that. And now you're running for state office and it might feel different. Was this a change of heart or was this just a cold political recalculation? But my voters in the second district have always known that I'm going to tell them the truth. And I truly regret giving the Trump administration any additional authorities on immigration. Look, immigration enforcement. You know, as I stood at the Whipple Detention Center with probably 50 ICE agents staring down, Ilhan Omar and Kelly Morrison and I, How could I not regret that particular vote, even if they weren't using it under Operation Metro Surge? Look, there's no one more pissed off at what the Trump administration has done under Operation Metro Surge. And, you know, I will spend, John, the rest of my political career taking on any administration. who wants to treat our immigrant neighbors our black and brown neighbors as others any administration who doesn't understand that they make our communities stronger. And, you know, I believe that the experience of, you know, having voted for that bill, along with a number of other U.S. senators like Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock and, you know, Mark Kelly, a lot of presidential contenders voted for that same bill. But there's no way.

over voting for lake and riley it fuels me every single day it fuels my rage against the trump administration um and it will fuel my work toward comprehensive immigration reform so here comes a segue something else that fuels your work but that you are against is big money. Like so many politicians, you both want big money out of politics and also do have to, or maybe don't have to, but do get support from corporate PACs. And I'm trying to figure out. how we can believe that you're willing to change corporate finance and political money while also needing those to power the campaigns you're currently on. How can we hold those two things together? Well, I mean, it's the same with gerrymandering in our country. Look, I 100% support Gavin Newsom, gerrymandering California after Texas did. We can't play on a different... field than Republicans. And Republicans have, you know, $300 million staring down us. And if Democrats unilaterally disarm and tie a hand behind our back on gerrymandering or on, you know, the money and politics part, I'm literally on the bill that would, the constitutional amendment that would end Citizens United. My belief is, though, that we shouldn't have corporate or corporate PAC money in politics. But until Republicans, too, don't have it. We are unilaterally disarming. We are putting ourselves at the risk of not having the resources to compete and win elections, which puts us at a disadvantage over having governing majorities and passing progressive policies in our community. So I don't see these things as being separate at all. And I would just, you know, I'd lightly point out. that, you know, my primary opponent, the lieutenant governor, she was actually outraising corporate and corporate PAC money as chair of the very super PAC that is now spending in her race. So, yeah, okay. A fair point. And again, I was not trying to paint you as a unicorn for being involved in corporate PACs because honestly, it is infested so much of this. It would be better, Sean, if we just outlaw it. Let's ban it. And let's ban gerrymandering too for both Republican states and Democratic states. Let's ban pack money and corporate money for Democrats and Republicans. Representative Angie Craig, you have a very full calendar, including another appointment you have to get to. Thank you for being generous for your time, and we really appreciate you. The primaries tomorrow. Representative Angie Craig, thanks for visiting with us on CityCast Twin Cities. Great to be here. And thank you so much, everyone. Would love to have your support.

We would love to hear from you. What are your thoughts on the primary that's happening tomorrow? And also, do you have any, like, routines for your voting? Is there a spot you always go to after you vote, an outfit you always wear, et cetera? We'd love to know about that as well. Tell us about your voting routine. Set us a text or leave us a voicemail on that CityCast Twin Cities hotline. The number is 612-217. There's more to discuss, but before we do that, we'll take a quick break. We'd like to welcome on Cedric Frazier, who is running for Hennepin County Attorney. Now, the primary is tomorrow, and the election is in November, and we want to hear from every candidate that is willing to talk to us. And we're actually starting this conversation with a little bit of a correction. So, Cedric, before we get into the big questions, I just want to establish. that on our July 17th episode, we were talking about the Hennepin County attorney race, we said that Attorney General Keith Ellison had endorsed both Howe Win and you. But if I understand it correctly, Ellison kindly rescinded his endorsement of Wynn in May and is now endorsing you exclusively. I'm just hoping to verify that so it's on the record for CityCast Twin Cities. That is correct, Sean. And thank you for that clarification. Absolutely. Now I want to get in some questions because, I mean, I don't think I need to tell a lot of people, but this is a really, really important job, especially for Hennepin County residents and for Minneapolis residents in particular. And I want to ask you about how your work, if you're elected to this office, will most tangibly impact the community that you live in. I think one thing, I got to do a quick, just back around my origin story and how I ended up here. My family, my grandparents were born, raising the Delta down in Mississippi. My grandfather, she was growing up, working on a farm, got attacked by one of the owners of the farm, fought back. It was a white guy, fought back, knocked him down. That night, his mother put him on a bus, sent him to Chicago. to save his life. That's why I was born and raised on the south side of Chicago. And I was born and raised at a time when crack cocaine and just started hitting urban communities. And so you can imagine, think about what that was like, gang violence, drug trafficking, gun violence. That is a backdrop of what I was kind of born into and raised into during the 80s and 90s in my time growing up on the south side of Chicago. And the one thing I've always taken away from that experience is that One perseverance to live through that and make it through that and be to where I am now. Statistically, I'm not supposed to be here. I wasn't supposed to go to college. I wasn't supposed to go to grad school. Wasn't supposed to go to law school. What's supposed to be a lawyer? What's supposed to be an elected official? So all those things, overcoming those things, bringing that perspective with me to this role as the Hennepin County attorney. But growing up in that moment, in that time, you know, there were a lot of our people in our community. We did not feel safe. The systems that were designed to protect us were not protecting everyone. There was law enforcement going on. People were being arrested. Large numbers of people were going to prison and being incarcerated, but we didn't feel safe. And part of my goal and the reason I ran is because I want to make sure we have a system that's working for everyone, just working with the community, and making sure that people can trust in that system and feel safe in that system. And what I'm referring to that it says, we have a system that for decades.

communities for people that look like me and lived experience like mine have not trusted within this criminal justice system to protect them. And also when they're going through the system, they haven't felt like they've been treated with decency and humanity. And that is something that just should have never been acceptable. And this will be the first time that in this county, someone will have an opportunity to elect someone that has felt the brunt of that system when it's not working right. And it hasn't been working right for a very long time. One thing that I really believe is possible in this job is building stronger and more resilient communities by how you prosecute, by what you elect to prosecute, and how you really run your office. Because you've been in this work, but this would be a much, you'd have your fingers on a lot more things and a lot more control over the overall services. So what could you in this role in Hennepin County, serving Minneapolis and more, do to build a more resilient community here? Well, what I want to make, this is a role in the way I see it as a leader is that the community is going to have access to their leader in this role. The community is going to be able to share information and talk about what they need to see done in their community so they feel safer and that they can also be vibrant and thriving within those communities. And I mean every single community. Any crime that happens anywhere within the county. is an issue. I mean, if people are feeling unsafe, I don't care what there's, if it's 55411 or 55428, I don't care what we're 55427. Whatever that, whatever that space is or that place is or that city is, we're going to take it serious and we're going to be in the communities having those conversations, understanding how we can work together with the community and any other public safety partners, along with elected officials, mayors, city council members, county commissioners, and to do what we can do with that input and feedback to make sure we're making those communities. safe. And I think I tell people, one of the things we have to do is build trust within that system. Because if we can build trust and communities feel like the system is working with them and not against them, they're more likely to engage and they're more likely to have those conversations so we can know exactly what's going on, what they're feeling, what they're experiencing. And we can draft and develop policies and practices based on that. And then when communities see that, it builds, it builds some trust that we just don't have right now. And I'm all about part of this big. Part of his campaign has been all about building trust. And as a leader, you have to listen before you can actually start to do that. And that's one of the big things I'm going to bring in to build those relationships, listen to the community, and then start to make decisions based off of that. I think there's a number of people in our community who might think of. progressive and safety as being at odds. I personally am not in that boat, but I think there's a lot of folks who hear that and think that. And then, you know, the paper of record in our area, the Star Tribune described you as the progressive favorite to replace Mary Moriarty. Mary Moriarty has plenty of fans, but she has plenty of detractors, maybe with particular focus on her policies, on prosecuting minors, and on ending pretextual traffic stops. And I'm just wondering... When you hear these criticisms of Mary Moriarty's tenure, do you think, oh, there actually are some things I might change under the hood, or are you lock, stock, and barrel with those positions and see further paths in that direction?

Well, I definitely think there's some things that I'm going to keep. I mean, the conviction integrity unit is a big one. We've had two people exonerated that were wrongfully convicted and sent to prison and lost one individual loss over 20 years of its freedom. When you look at things like that, again, these are things that lead to the distrust that we have in this system, and particularly for black and brown and poor communities. There are more individuals like that in this county than there are not. And I want to make sure that we are making sure that we have a system that is working, that is ensuring that those type of things don't happen. And if someone raises an issue that that may have happened, that we can go back, look at those cases, we can admit what happened, and then we can try to go do as far as, do what we can do, to fix that. Now, again, we're not going to give people their lives back, their freedom back that they had. But we can, it goes a long way for a system to say there was a mistake, there was a wrong done here. We're going to correct that. We're going to give this individual his freedom back, put them back in the community. And then the state is on the hook for that for paying. When I talk about the everywhere on the hook for that, taxpayer dollars, the state plays claims out when people are wrongfully convicted. We paid out one this past year. I'm the co-chair of our finance committee at the state level. We paid out of claim at almost $5 million. Most of that went to one individual because he was wrongfully convicted. And then later he was exonerated. We need to make sure that there are very, those are very rare cases. But we also need to make sure that we have a tool and apparatus in place to address those situations when they come up. So something like that, I'm absolutely going to make sure I lean into and do that. There's some other things. There's a wage theft division that I really want to lean into, treat wage theft like the crime that it is. And that's what it should be. When we have people that are, when we have working people, working families that are working two or three jobs and they're earning those wages and they're not getting paid those wages, it destabilizes a family. which in turn destabilizes the community, which leads to public safety issues. I look at this from a much broader perspective than any other candidate in this race because I've seen it from a much broader perspective. My lived experiences, couple of my professional experiences, including my experience as an elected official. I'm looking at the entire board, the broader board, in terms of how everything impacts public safety, not just the narrow lane of prosecution and the period of process in our cross-ro system. Again, I'll be clear, that's a part of it. That's a tool that we can use to disrupt violence and for deterrence. But it is not the only tool we have. Investments in programs that give people access to opportunities and resources, and particularly our young people in an upstream manner, will help us from having these issues that we have to deal with in a reactive way on the back end that we all know has not worked for us. Speaking of things not working for us, I think all of us were no stranger to working at a job and going, man, if I was in charge, I'd do things a little bit differently under the hood. And you've actually worked as a public defender in Hennepin County Attorney's Office. And I'm sure someday, whenever your attorneys get done, which I'm guessing is like 9.40 p.m. given the caseload you have. Do you ever go, you know, if I'm in charge, I'm doing this differently? So I'm not talking about philosophy. I'm almost talking about like... office layout, structure, management, like parking spaces. When you were actually working in the office, what did you think, when I'm in charge, this is going to be different?

Well, you know, one of the things I think about, one, relationships are important, relationships with the bench relationships, with law enforcement relationship with other elected officials, relationship with communities, community leaders, community advocacy groups. Those are important because it really colors the perspective that people have when you have good relationships and what you're telling them for what they're going to believe you, and what they're going to trust that you're saying, that the system is going to operate in a way where it teaches, treats them with decency in humanity. And you mentioned that, you know, 940 at night. That's usually the time on a good day. that I may be leaving the jail after a long day in court working with clients. I'm leaving the jail because I have to visit with a client that may be up for a trial in a couple of days or the next week, and we're preparing for that trial. That's one of the things I do want to work on with our bench, figuring out ways that we can be more efficient with the way we maneuver cases to the system. Oftentimes we have individuals, and this will tie into some conversations about how we deal with the way we do bail, not just our state, but in our country. You know, bail was off. Bell was originally meant just to ensure that someone was going to come back to court to continue to process so they can go through that process. Right now, it's very, bail is very punitive. If you're poor, if you can't afford to pay for that bail, you're sitting in that jail. And if you're sitting in that jail, think about the collateral damage. You're not working. You're not bringing in a paycheck anymore. You're not able to pay the bills. You're missing out on kids' activities. If you're one of the caretakers, you're missing out on getting that kid ready for school. You're disrupting the entire family, which, again, destabilizes things, which leads into more issues in our public safety. So I want to work at our bench and figuring out ways we could be more efficient to move those cases alone to limit the impact of some of those bail situations where people can't afford to get out. But just in overall, I want to create some of the conversations that I've had with some of the workers in the office now is, Morale is low. One of my big priorities going in is I want to make sure that we create a working environment for the workers that they feel good about, that they feel good about when they come to work every single day. They feel good when they leave, leave work at the end of the day. And they feel good about telling people that this is the work that they're doing and why they chose to do that work. Because in most cases, they chose to do this work because they want to find a way to give back to the community. They want to find a way to protect and give back in a way. And this is the way they do that. It's a public servant. It's a civil servant. as a lying attorney or a prosecutor in that office. And also all the other staff, victim services, all those folks come to do that work because they feel it's a good way to give back to the community. So I want them to have the best environment possible to do that. And I've been very clear that I plan to be the most labor-friendly, most labor-friendly county attorney they've ever seen in this state and hopefully when it's all said and done within this country. And that comes from my background. The last 10 years, I've been a labor attorney working with workers and standing very strong and side-by-side with our workers. Let's move from 9.40 p.m. to 9.40 a.m. You open your phone and you realize you have an absolutely blank day. No responsibilities. No caretaken. No litigation. No nothing. What are you doing to fill up your day in your district at that time? That sounds incredible.

And those days are very rare now. And, you know, I think about I've been an elected official at the state level for the last six years. And those are very rare days because we're part-time legislators here. We also have full-time jobs. But when on a day like that, first thing I'm probably going to do is I'm going to go to the gym, get a workout in, because that's important to take care of yourself. It helps with the mental and the physical to keep the energy up and keep moving. I'm going to figure out what my wife's got going on that day. And hopefully she's got some free time, either for lunch or after work, and we can go hang out. One of our favorite spots is Pub 42, write a New Hope, a few blocks from us, and we'll go hang out and we'll have a drink and have something to eat and just spend some time together because, I got to tell you, there's sacrifices for being a public servant. And a lot of the time you miss away from your family and your partner, you've got to find ways to make sure what I would always call it. I would tell Melissa Horton of this during the session, I would try to. find some times to sneak away on a long weekend with my wife. And I say it's, she said, what's the occasion? Birthday family thing. I said, it's a marital maintenance. It's relationship maintenance. It's making sure we stay connected and find that time, even in the midst of so much chaos going on in your life and work. So that's probably what my day would be looked like if I had some free time. Well, Cedric Frazier, I'd love to send you back to marital maintenance, but I imagine I'm probably sending you back to more interviews and more planning with the primary coming up tomorrow. You got a lot on your mind. But I sincerely appreciate you taking the time to clarify your background and some of your policies with Citicast Twin Cities. And just generally, it's been nice to get to know you a little bit more. And thanks for your time today. Absolutely. Appreciate you.

That's all for today here on CityCast Twin Cities. I'm your host, Sean McPherson, Alicia Nichols, Representative Craig, Representative Frazier, Denzel Beelen, thank you for being here today. On tomorrow's episode, we're planning on talking to Ali Elibati about cultural cafes, Lily Gross of the Raddish Farm Stop, and we're going to hear from Kendall Qualls, who's running for governor. Don't miss it. You can get more news delivered right to your inbox by subscribing to the CityCast Twin Cities newsletter. If you enjoyed today's show, why not share this podcast with someone who wants to practice some marital maintenance? We'll see you back here tomorrow for more news from around the city.