DETROIT LAKES — During jury selection for the felony burglary trial of Sen. Nicole Mitchell, DFL-Woodbury, the Becker County prosecutor asked just a few questions of the 23 potential jurors as he sought to forecast who might be most receptive to his arguments.
Among them: “Would you agree that how the person was dressed is relevant to their intentions?” Brian McDonald asked. Many of the potential jurors nodded.
On the night she was arrested at her stepmother’s home for an alleged botched burglary, Mitchell was dressed in black clothing and a black hat, police say.
The detailed questions from McDonald — and Mitchell’s attorney Bruce Ringstrom, Jr. — underscored the importance both sides place on jury selection, which can often determine the outcome of a case before it even starts.
First, though, Seventh Judicial District Chief Judge Michael Fritz, presiding over the first floor courtroom, sought to determine if the prospective jurors could rule fairly.
In a move befitting a case that’s been widely covered across the state, Fritz asked the prospective jurors to raise their hands if they have heard of the case against Mitchell. Of the 23 prospective jurors sitting in the jury box who were being questioned, 15 raised their hands in the affirmative.
The case has garnered statewide media coverage since Mitchell’s arrest in April 22, 2024, after police say they found her in the basement of her stepmother’s Detroit Lakes home at about 4:45 a.m. Police say she told them during her arrest that she was attempting to retrieve some of her late father’s possessions, including his ashes, according to the amended criminal complaint.
Fritz conducted his own questioning to determine what the potential jurors had heard of the case and whether that would bias them for or against Mitchell. Fritz called each of the 15 jurors who raised their hands into the courtroom to face individual questioning, asking whether they could issue a verdict based on evidence in the case, not what they’ve watched on the news or read on social media.
“You understand that the news isn’t evidence and you understand you must rule based on what you hear in trial?” Fritz asked each of the 15 jurors. All said they understood, and they could do that.
“It’s been on the news a lot,” one juror told the judge.
Ringstrom, Mitchell’s attorney, asked in a follow-up question whether the juror believed Mitchell could receive a fair trial in Becker County or whether she would hold it against the defense that they didn’t attempt to move the trial.
“Given the news coverage, I’m not sure anywhere in Minnesota would be better than Becker County,” she responded.
The trial could test jurors’ ability to set aside partisan identities. Mitchell, a suburban Democrat, is being tried in a county that went for President Donald Trump last year by 33 percentage points.
Ringstrom spent nearly four hours questioning the jurors. He asked whether they’ve been the victim of a burglary, what burglary meant to them and whether they knew anyone with dementia or Alzheimer’s.
The defense plans to argue that Carol Mitchell, Nicole Mitchell’s stepmother, has a deteriorating memory and is an unreliable witness. In the days following her arrest, Nicole Mitchell said she drove up to Detroit Lakes to conduct a welfare check on Carol Mitchell, but she startled her stepmother, who she says has Alzheimer’s and related paranoia.
“Have you ever had the experience of someone very convinced of a memory that wasn’t true?” Ringstrom asked one juror who said she worked with dementia patients.
He also asked whether the prospective jurors would look unfavorably upon Ringstrom if he aggressively cross-examined a person who “does have or probably does have dementia,” alluding to the fact that he intends to ask tough questions of Carol Mitchell and her memory of the alleged break-in.
“I’m afraid you’re going to hold it against Nicole Mitchell if I ask questions too aggressively,” Ringstrom told the prospective jurors. Multiple prospective jurors said that it depends on the circumstances.
During the questioning, Ringstrom asked the jurors to raise their hand to indicate whether they believe politicians should be held to a higher standard compared to regular citizens.
“Is there any reason that someone facing a criminal accusation should have a higher burden on them if they’re a politician rather than a citizen facing the same charge?” Ringstrom asked.
Multiple jurors said “no,” and that they believe the law should apply to everyone uniformly.
McDonald, the Becker County Attorney, asked the potential jurors fewer questions, including whether anyone had been involved in a disagreement over an inheritance.
Roderick Mitchell, Nicole Mitchell’s father, died without a will in 2023, according to the criminal complaint. A probate court awarded Carol Mitchell 100% of Roderick Mitchell’s estate.
McDonald, building upon Ringstrom’s questioning about whether politicians should be held to a higher standard, asked the jurors whether they believed lawyers were in a better position to know the law. Multiple jurors nodded their heads.
This is relevant because Nicole Mitchell is an attorney. McDonald asked jurors whether the time or day or night is relevant as to why a person allegedly broke into a home. Multiple jurors said yes.
Finally, he asked about Mitchell’s black garb, which internet cutups have compared to that of a cat burglar.
At the end of the day Monday, the prosecution and defense seated 15 jurors — 10 men and five women. Only 12 jurors are going to deliberate a verdict; the remaining three are alternates.
Mitchell has pleaded not guilty to first-degree burglary and possession of burglary tools. If convicted, Mitchell faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. If found guilty of possession of burglary tools she faces a maximum sentence of three years in prison.
Opening statements are expected to begin Tuesday morning.
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