March 10 2021
It's been a hectic day for weather — only the second week of March, and the state’s first tornado watch. It includes much of southeastern Minnesota through 8 p.m. March seems early, but remember — the devastating Comfrey-St. Peter tornado happened March 29, 1998. Tonight, look for snow in the north and west — with as much as 8 inches in some places. Lows in the mid 20s to lower 30s. Tomorrow will be mostly sunny with highs in the upper 30s to mid 40s Find more from Updraft.
The trial of Derek Chauvin moved ahead today, as the Minnesota Supreme Court has denied Derek Chauvin's petition to review an appellate court decision regarding an additional murder charge against the former Minneapolis police officer.
Chauvin was challenging the Court of Appeals decision, which indicated the charge of third-degree murder was appropriate in this case. Judge Peter Cahill says they’ll take up the impact on the case tomorrow morning.
Prosecutors have been trying to get that charge added, but the trial judge says he still doesn't know if he has jurisdiction to revive it. Judge Peter Cahill said Wednesday he's waiting on guidance from the Court of Appeals. Find more coverage on the trial at MPRnews.org. In COVID-19 news today, a surge in vaccinations across Minnesota last week has leveled off, even as more people are becoming eligible for the shots.
Doses of the COVID vaccines trended up steadily last week, in part because of new shipments of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine. But those shipments have tailed off and so has the uptick in shots reported to the Minnesota Department of Health. The latest data shows one of the sharpest week-over-week declines reported so far. Second doses of the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines have also again eclipsed initial vaccine doses in recent days.
Johnson & Johnson has been tempering expectations of new shipments, telling officials in the European Union that vaccine component and equipment shortages have put the company what Reuters described as "under stress" to meet its goal of 55 million doses globally by the end of June.
COVID cases in Minnesota, meanwhile, were on par with daily recent averages, at about 900, with nine additional deaths.
You can get more of the latest news, in just a few minutes, via the Minnesota Today podcast. — Tim Nelson | MPR News | 
