Looting for Winston Smith or someone like him (5)

Winston Boogie Smith was the target of a North Star Fugitive Task Force arrest operation that cornered him on the afternoon of June 3 at the top of the parking ramp adjacent to Uptown’s Seven Points (better known as Calhoun Square). Smith appears to have engaged in a gun battle with members of the task force when they sought to arrest him on an outstanding warrant.

The woman who was in Smith’s car at the time of the shootout has retained counsel. What does she need a lawyer for? Perhaps she awaits a big payday, along with Smith’s family. See part 4 of the continuing saga of Winston Boogie Smith, “father of three.”

The task force operated under the auspices of the United States Marshals Service. Smith’s shooting by law enforcement members of the task force is being investigated by the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension.

Yesterday two search warrants were filed in the case. KARE 11’s Lou Raguse has a good straight news summary here. Citing the affidavit signed by BCA Special Agent James Reyerson, Lou reports:

According to the search warrant receipt, agents collected a Smith and Wesson M&P 380 handgun from the front driver side of [Winston Smith’s] Maserati. They also collected six Blazer 380 Auto cartridge cases from the driver’s side, center console and passenger side in the front of the SUV.

In addition, they collected a loaded Smith and Wesson M&P 380 magazine with seven rounds in a duffel, according to the warrant.

Outside the Maserati on the passenger side where officers fired, the BCA collected fifteen FC 9mm Luger cartridge cases on the ground.

The agents also collected many bullet fragments, several phones, clothing and more than $800 cash as evidence in the case, according to the search warrant.

Smith promoted war with the police and did his best to wage it when the time came. Smith skipped a May 19, 2021 sentencing hearing and a new warrant in Minnesota was issued for his arrest. He was a bad dude whose supporters now seek to enroll him in the annals of the sainted, Minneapolis style — with an “autonomous zone” dedicated to him.

I am not clear on the status of the zone. The Star Tribune has posted video (below) of the police efforts to clear the heavily trafficked intersection on Tuesday evening with this caption:

Police and protesters clashed Tuesday night as the City of Minneapolis cleared barricades erected across Lake Street in Uptown. The street had been occupied by protesters as a memorial to Winston Smith and Deona Knajdek. Some protesters struck officers with debris, who then responded with less lethal weapons. Smith’s death during an attempted arrest by U.S. marshals — who were not wearing body cameras — launched daily protests at the Uptown intersection of Lake Street and Girard Avenue. Protester Deona Knajdek was killed in the zone Sunday when a driver collided with another car being used as a roadblock to prevent vehicles from driving into demonstrations in the middle of the street.

The driver who killed Deona Knajdek “in the zone” on Sunday has now been charged with murder. Minneapolis itself is “in the zone” of crime, chaos, and illegality. Its police force has shrunk by 25 percent in the past year and the boy mayor of the city has asked the governor to place National Guard troops in standby.

The Star Tribune is in its own zone. Its lead editorial today salutes “A bipartisan push for infrastructure.”