Bluestem has been posting about the ongoing investigation into allegations of alcohol consumption at a late May high school graduation party on the property of Morrison County Attorney Jan Jude and her husband, Russ Jude, an investigator in the Mille Lacs band tribal police force.
Some new developments are afoot in the case that reveal two conflicting narratives emerging in the report by Anoka County Detective Dan Douglas.
Up at the Mille Lacs Messenger, a feisty community weekly, editor Brett Larson reports in Investigation reveals two stories of party:
164-page investigation by the Anoka County Sheriff’s Office into an underage drinking party at the home of Mille Lacs County Attorney Jan Jude reveals two different versions of what went on May 26 and 27 at the Jude residence near Foreston.
After drinking at the party, Bailey Hamilton, a Milaca graduate, was taken by ambulance to the Princeton emergency room with alcohol poisoning. Hamilton told the Messenger June 5 that the doctor said he almost died.
The Messenger has compiled a list of 40 underage Milaca High School students who were at the party. Detective Dan Douglas spoke with 14 kids, in addition to Jan Jude, her 18-year-old daughter, and her husband Russ Jude. He tried and failed to interview 10 more kids, according to the report. . .
Jan Jude told Douglas she knew of no underage drinking at her residence at a graduation bonfire in honor of her 18-year-old daughter. Her daughter also said Jan Jude did not know there was any drinking, and Russ Jude also denied knowledge of underage drinking.
“They made it very, very clear to me there was to be absolutely no drinking but I’m a teenager and I have no sense,” Jan Jude’s daughter, whose name has been redacted from the report, said. “I personally said I don’t want any of you driving if you’ve been drinking. … That wasn’t a rule from my mom or Russ or anybody.”
Several kids at the party, whose names were also redacted, said they were under the impression that Jan and Russ Jude knew underage drinking was occurring and “were fine” as long as no one drove drunk.
One individual interviewed said she gave her keys to Jan Jude. . . .
Read the whole hot mess in the Messenger.
One new piece of information from the investigation appears to contradict an earlier statement the Mille Lacs County Attorney issued to the media after the Messenger broke the story. In his editor's blog, Larson posts in 14 going on 40?:
On Tuesday, June 4, Jude told Messenger reporter Diane Gibas, "There was no juvenile alcohol party at my house."
In Jude's comment to the media following the Messenger's breaking of the story June 5, she said, "It has been reported that a juvenile exhibiting signs of alcohol consumption was on my property during a graduation party for my daughter. It has also been reported that there are other minors have said they consumed alcohol on my property. I had no knowledge of any of these events occurring on my property until these reports were brought to my attention."
It's a bit unclear what she meant by "until these reports were brought to my attention," but it appears that she's saying she didn't know until June 5, when the Messenger story was published. The investigator's interview with Jan Jude says Mille Lacs County Deputy Brad Hunt talked to Russ Jude during the early morning hours of May 27, and that Russ passed information on to Jan that Bailey Hamilton, who had been drinking on the Judes' property, had been taken to the emergency room with apparent alcohol poisoning.
In his blog, Larson explores the state statutes that govern misconduct by public officers and employees, wondering if the laws might apply to the Judes in this case.
And then there's the Jude daughter's statement to the investigator, which seem torn from the High School Social Queen's Book of Talking to Adults. Larson observes in his blog:
Jude's daughter's comments in the investigation were a bit surprising. She said there were never more than 10 or 15 kids at the bonfire. Others interviewed have estimated that there were 30 to 60 kids at the fire. The Messenger has a list of 40. Some may have come and gone during the evening, but a maximum of 10 to 15 does not correspond with any other versions of events that we've heard.
Indeed, one of the teens who agreed to be interviewed for an earlier newspaper story was not interviewed by the Anoka County detective, Larson reports in the news article, nor were her parents, who drove to the Jude property to pick up their intoxicated daughter and a friend.
And then there's the anonymous 911 call early on the morning of May 27 that's mentioned in the report, according to the Messenger news article:
The investigative report also includes the transcript of a 911 call from an unknown female reporting reckless driving in the area at 12:52 a.m. on May 27. “Hi, I was just driving down on the back roads on my way home and I noticed there was reckless driving and I know there was a party out here so I didn’t know if you guys had heard anything about underage drinking?”
When asked for more information she said, “I know it’s *****’s grad party, but I don’t know if they — that’s where they were.”
The report also includes an email from jeffv to Brad Hunt dated 5/27/2013 12:59:53 AM saying “Anonymous Female Called 911 From (***-***-****). Said That Some Of Her Friends Had Been At The Party And Said There Was Underage Drinking Fyi. Caller Said She Was Concerned About The “Roads Being Safe”. She Said It Was *****’s Party.” (The name is redacted in the report. The phone number has been redacted by the Messenger.)
Larson's blog concludes:
The Messenger has received additional information about the party that we have not published yet because we are still seeking confirmation from additional sources.
Although we believe it is primarily the duty of law enforcement to follow up on those leads, we will continue to do so until we are satisfied that the voters of Mille Lacs County have all the information they need to make a good decision if Jan Jude decides to run again in 2014.
At this point we are not satisfied that all relevant information has come to light.
Anyone who has information about the party that would either exonerate or implicate Jan or Russ Jude is encouraged to call Commander Paul Sommer of the Anoka County Sheriff's Office at (763) 323-5000 or Diane Gibas, Rob Passons or Brett Larson at the Messenger at (320) 676-3123.
Bluestem hopes that Messenger readers with knowledge of the case contribute their information to the investigators or the newspaper.
Photo: A Jude family graduation photo, via Jan Jude's Facebook page. One gathers from these folks that the bonfire was nothing more than a couple handfuls of kids toasting marshmallows. What, no s'mores?
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