48 year-old Morgan Wilson of St. Paul has been charged with one count of first degree burglary and two counts of false imprisonment after impersonating a police officer three different times.

Incident Reports:

1. Wilson knocked on the door of the St. Paul home of a woman and her teenage children. He claimed to be a police officer and showed the woman a badge and a Taser in his waistband. Wilson then aged if the 17-year-old son was involved in a robbery, handcuffed him, and stole cash from his wallet. He then went upstairs, handcuffed a girl, and stole the family’s hunting rifles.

2. Wilson stopped two men on the street and demanded to see their identification. The men questioned him and asked to see his badge, at which point his again displayed his Taser. The men remained unconvinced and Wilson grew angry and clenched his hands around one man’s neck.

3. Wilson knocked at the door of another St. Paul home, claiming to be from the SPPD and demanding to be let inside. The residents questioned his badge and Wilson again became agitated.

The real police were alerted and a K9 officer tracked down and arrested Morgan Wilson. According to a St. Paul Police spokesperson, if a person is wondering about the validity of an officer or a badge number, ”If in doubt, call,” he said, adding that citizens can call police to verify identification or request a squad to respond to questionable situations.”

Prosecution is unlikely to be forgiving in cases such as this. Impersonating a police officer is seen to be an especially egregious act. In the case of Morgan Wilson, where this power was abused to burgal and imprison his victims, the case outcome is even less likely to be favorable. However, a person need not go to the same lengths to be charged with burglary and false imprisonment. These are very serious charges. If you are arrested or under investigation for any violent crime, contact an experienced MN criminal defense attorney right away.

The story of Little Red Riding Hood has many versions, ranging from the tame to the most violent. Today, we’re going to tell our own version of the classic tale and explore the relationship to Minnesota criminal conduct laws.

One day, a beautiful woman named Red Riding Hood set off through the forest to visit her ailing grandmother. As she is walking, Little Red is spotted by a big, bad, lecherous wolf.

When the wolf sees Little Red, his eyes light up and he makes up his mind to force himself on her. However, the woods are full of forest animals and the wolf doesn’t want any witnesses. So, he approaches Red and asks her where she is going. Naively, Red told the wolf that she was headed to her grandmother’s house and then gave him directions.

As a distraction, the wolf suggested to Red that she pick some wildflowers for her grandmother. She agreed and, having successfully stalled Red, the wolf ran ahead to the grandmother’s house.

When he got there, the wolf knocked down the door, hit the old woman over the head with a pipe, then locked her in the attic. He then dressed himself as the grandmother and crawled into bed to wait.

When Red got to the house, she went inside and noticed that something wasn’t right about her grandmother. “Oh Granny,” she said, “What long fur you have!” The wolf replied, “All the better to keep you warm, my dear.”  Then Red said “Oh Granny, what big hands you have!” and the wolf, sensing his opportunity and Red’s vulnerability, screamed “ALL THE BETTER TO TOUCH YOU WITH!”

The wolf jumped out of bed, tackled Red, and forced her to have sex with him. At this point, the commotion roused the unconscious grandmother, who  calls the police from the closet.

When the police arrived, they hauled the wolf away and charged him with the following crimes:

Assault in the First Degree: When the wolf hit Granny with the pipe, he inflicted great bodily harm. Assault in the first degree is a felony in Minnesota. If convicted, the wolf could receive a sentence of up to 20 years in prison and/or $20,000 in fines.

Burglary in the First Degree: Because the wolf broke into Granny’s house with the intention of committing a crime, he was charged with burglary in the first degree. This is a felony charge and the wolf can face up to 20 years in prison and/or $35,000 in fines.

Criminal Sexual Conduct in the First Degree: The wolf used considerable force and threat of harm while raping Red, so he may be charged with felony aggravated sexual assault. This is a very serious charge in Minnesota and if convicted, the wolf could be sentenced up to 30 years in prison and/or a fine of up to $40,000.

Burglary, assault, and sexual assault are all extremely serious crimes in Minnesota that carry extremely serious consequences. For the big bad wolf, or anyone charged with one of these crimes, it is absolutely imperative that they retain an experienced MN criminal defense attorney right away.

Stay tuned as we retell more classic fairy tales in our Fairy Tale Law blog series.

Photo:

Shlomi Nissim

On Monday, we explored the story of the Three Little Pigs and the criminal charges which could be brought against the violent, villanous Big Bad Wolf. This week we are recounting the tale of Goldilocks, a mischievous little girl who gets herself into trouble with a family of bears. Unlike the Big Bad Wolf, Goldilocks is neither violence nor particularly malevolent. However, her mischief could still leave her facing some hefty charges and in need of an experienced criminal defense attorney.

Our story begins with a cottage deep in the Fairy Tale woods. This little house is inhabited by a family of three gentle bears: Papa Bear, Mama Bear, and Baby Bear. They keep a tidy, orderly house and each bear has its own porridge bowl, chair, and bed–each sized appropriately. One day, when the Three Bears were away from the house, a mischievous little girl named Goldilocks wandered off into the woods. There, she came upon the little house and peeked in the window. After seeing that the house was empty, she let herself inside.

First, Goldilocks went into the kitchen, where three bowls of fresh porridge were sitting out on the table. Feeling a little hungry, Goldilocks tried the porridge from the biggest bowl, but it was far too hot. She then sampled the porridge from the second bowl, but it was far too cold. Deciding to give it one last try, Goldilocks tried the porridge from the smallest bowl and decided it was just right. Goldilocks wanted to sit down to finish the porridge, so she  sat down in the smallest chair, the chair belonging to Baby Bear. However, Goldilocks was a bit on the porky side and broke the chair into pieces.

All this activity made the impish little blonde very tired, so she decided to take a nap in one of the beds. After trying out all three beds, Goldilocks decided that Baby Bear’s bed was the perfect size, so she lay down and quickly fell fast asleep.

Soon after, the Bears returned home from their outing and were very hungry. Papa Bear and Mama Bear saw their bowls on the table and exclaimed, “Someone has been eating my porridge!” When poor baby bear saw his bowl, he cried out “Someone has eaten all of my porridge and broken my chair!” Realizing that they had been victims of an intruder, the Three Bear ventured upstairs. Papa and Mama Bear saw that their beds had been mussed and exclaimed “Someone has been sleeping in our beds!” Then Baby Bear looked over to his bed and, seeing Goldilocks, announced “There she is!”

Frightened, Goldilocks jumped up and ran from the house. The Three Bears, being reasonable mammals, called the Fairy Tale Police. Goldilocks was soon arrested.

Goldilocks entered the dwelling without consent with the intent of committing a crime. While she was in the house, the Three Bears returned home. Because of these conditions, Goldilocks was charged with Burglary in the First Degree. This is a felony charge and Goldilocks could be sentenced to imprisonment for up to 20 years or a fine of up to $35,000.

Goldilocks broke Baby Bear’s chair, which was handcrafted by elves and very valuable. It would cost the Bears over $500 to replace the chair, so Goldilocks was charged with Criminal Damage to Property in the First Degree. For this, Goldilocks could receive a sentence of up to 5 years or a five of up to $10,000.

Goldilocks ate the Bears’ porridge. Although the porridge is not especially valuable, this is still considered a crime. Goldilocks was charged with Misdemeanor Theft  which carries a maximum penalty of 90 days in jail and fines up to $1,000.

The charges faced by Goldilocks were very serious, so she decided to use her right to an attorney and contacted MN criminal defense attorney Avery Appelman.

The Appelman Law Firm is well versed in the laws of Minnesota property crimes, as well as the juvenile justice system. If you have been charged with any property crimes in Minnesota, contact an experienced MN criminal defense attorney right away.  Stay tuned as we continue our Fairy Tale Law blog series.