HIBBING — An Iron Range man who escaped custody and then was mistakenly released from jail pleaded guilty to charges in two St. Louis County cases Friday, May 8.
Michael Hart, 41, of Hibbing, pleaded guilty to felony burglary, misdemeanor assault and violating a domestic abuse no contact order.
In June 2025, Hart broke into an apartment in Hibbing where a woman he was romantically involved with was staying and assaulted the woman and another man, according to court filings. The man shot at Hart once, and Hart left the apartment. He was later found at the Grand Rapids hospital with a gunshot wound in his abdomen.
It was on those charges that Hart was being held at the Northeast Regional Correction Center in Saginaw when he escaped in September.
He was found and arrested in Cohasset two weeks later. Hart resisted arrest and spat in the face of two Itasca County sheriff’s deputies. He was charged with two felony counts of assault, to which he pleaded guilty in January.
Itasca County released Hart from custody shortly after he pleaded guilty. Sheriff Joe Dasovich said at the time his office had contacted St. Louis County and was informed Hart’s warrant was quashed there, so Itasca County had no legal authority to hold him.
A joint statement from St. Louis County Sheriff Gordon Ramsay and County Attorney Kim Maki said Hart was “mistakenly released” despite two active cases and substantial unpaid bail amounts in what they called a “systems failure.”
Hart violated a no contact order related to the Hibbing break-in and assaults on Feb. 6. St. Louis County jail records show Hart was booked into the jail on the same day. He is still in custody.
Hart’s sentencing hearing for the burglary, assault and no contact order violation is set for June 18. He still faces a felony charge for escaping from the corrections facility. His sentencing in the Itasca County assault case has been delayed until August to allow the St. Louis County cases to finish.
