Good morning and welcome to the first Friday of summer.
Prosecutors have filed criminal vehicular homicide charges against a driver accused of causing a crash that claimed the lives of five young women in Minneapolis last week. MPR's Matt Sepic reports Derrick John Thompson, 27, of Brooklyn Park, was charged Thursday with 10 counts in connection with the crash last Friday. For each person who died in the crash, Thompson faces a criminal vehicular homicide charge for operating a vehicle in a grossly negligent manner, and a second criminal vehicular homicide charge for leaving the scene of the crash. Thompson also faces federal charges for possession of a firearm as a felon, possession of fentanyl, and carrying a firearm during and in relation to a drug trafficking crime. The victims were Sabiriin Ali, 17, of Bloomington; Salma Abdikadir, 20, of St. Louis Park; Sahra Gesaade, 20, of Brooklyn Center; Sagal Hersi, 19, of Minneapolis; and Siham Odhowa, 19, of Minneapolis.
3M will pay more than $10 billion to resolve lawsuits over drinking water contaminated by PFAS — so-called "forever chemicals." MPR News reports the company said the settlement "resolves current and future drinking water claims" by public water systems. It stems from lawsuits over water contaminated by firefighting foam that contained PFAS; the chemicals don't break down in the environment and have been linked to serious health issues. The company's news release placed the settlement, to be paid over 13 years, at "up to $10.3 billion." A company filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission put the amount at $10.5 billion to $12.5 billion. The settlement still needs to be approved by the court. In 2018, 3M reached an $850 million settlement with the state of Minnesota in a lawsuit over chemical contamination of water in several eastern Twin Cities suburbs.
Minnesota legislative leaders spoke with White House officials Thursday about how they got a broad swath of new laws passed this year. Senate Majority Leader Kari Dziedzic, DFL-Minneapolis, said the White House wanted to learn more about how Minnesota's narrowly-split Legislature advanced a bill creating a paid family and medical leave program. And she said officials there said Minnesota's plan could become a model. "We also just talked strategy on what it took to get it passed and how we had conversations with members and conversations with businesses and conversations with advocates," Dziedzic told MPR's Dana Ferguson. "And telling the story of why paid family leave is so important." Minnesota officials also talked about infrastructure, climate policy and other laws passed at the Capitol this year. Dziedzic said she's glad to see Minnesota lifted up as an example and hopes lawmakers can take a cue from other progressive states on climate policy.
First lady Jill Biden is headed to Minneapolis for a campaign fundraiser and a weekend Pride event. The White House said Thursday Mrs. Biden will travel to Minnesota on Saturday. She is scheduled to be in town for only a few hours before departing for Tennessee. The first lady has been to Minnesota previously to talk about health care and education.
Construction of the Metro Transit B Line on Selby Ave. in St. Paul is causing big headaches for some business owners. The Pioneer Press reports: Business owners in the historic Rondo neighborhood at the intersection of Selby Avenue and Victoria Street have dealt with a closed road, inaccessible sidewalks and a slew of other problems over the last month for the upcoming Metro Transit B Line with little to no support from local officials, said Tameka Jones, who owns a plant-based beauty supply store called Lip Esteem. "If I would have known about the construction, I wouldn't have invested so much into this season," she said. Late spring is usually prime time for Lip Esteem with prom and graduation, Jones said, but this year, she worries that the product she has already invested in won't sell due to the decreased foot traffic outside her store. Jones said nearly half of her revenue comes from in-person sales at her brick-and-mortar store. On an average weekday, she said the store will pull in around $350, but during construction that number has shrunk to around $60 a day. "They know what their paychecks will look like," Jones said, gesturing to the construction workers right outside her store's window.
And NPR reports: The House of Representatives approved a resolution referring articles of impeachment against President Biden to two committees — slowing down a push from House conservatives to try to remove the president. The resolution directs the House Homeland Security and House Judiciary panels to examine any evidence of wrongdoing related to the president's immigration policies. It was approved on Thursday 219-208, along party lines. | 
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