A state senator from Minnesota has been charged with burglary after she allegedly broke into her stepmother’s home to retrieve, among other things, her father’s ashes.
Sen. Nicole Mitchell, 49, of Woodbury, was arrested early Monday at her stepmother’s home in Detroit Lakes, according to the Associated Press.
The Democrat politician said she wanted to get some of her father’s items because her stepmother would not talk to her, the arresting officer wrote in the complaint.
According to the complaint, Mitchell was dressed in black and wearing a black hat. A flashlight was found near her.
The complaint was filed in Becker County District Court in Detroit Lakes and charges Mitchell with one count of first-degree burglary, a felony. She remained jailed ahead of her first court appearance Tuesday, the AP reported.
“I know I did something bad,” Mitchell allegedly said after she was told of her right to remain silent.
Her father, Rod Mitchell, died last month, according to an obituary posted by a Detroit Lakes funeral home. He had been married to Mitchell’s stepmother for 40 years, it said.
Nicole Mitchell told the arresting officer she wanted pictures, a flannel shirt, ashes as well as other items. In particular, the ashes got her “to this stage,” the complaint said.
According to the complaint, Nicole Mitchell told investigators she had a backpack with her when she entered the residence through a basement window that had been propped open, per the AP.
Officers found her Minnesota Senate ID, her driver’s license, two laptop computers, a cellphone and Tupperware containers in the backpack, the complaint said. She indicated that she got caught soon after entering.
“Clearly I’m not good at this,” the complaint quoted her as saying.
In an interview, the stepmother, who was not named, said she applied for a restraining order because she was afraid of her stepdaughter.
“She also said that while most of her husband’s ashes were buried, she sent Mitchell a miniature container with some of them, the AP reported.
Republican Senate Majority Leader Mark Johnson, of East Grand Forks, said he was shocked by the events.
“The public expects Legislators to meet a high standard of conduct,” Johnson said in a statement, according to WCCO CBS News. “As information comes out, we expect the consequences to meet the actions, both in the court of law, and in her role at the legislature.”
