The suspect in an April 29 multiple murder in Minneapolis, Minn. is a convicted felon who legally could not possess a firearm, but he now faces four counts of second-degree murder and two counts of attempted second-degree murder, along with a single count of illegal gun possession.
This comes almost two years after the state adopted new gun control legislation–including a so-called “universal background check” mandate–which was supposed to prevent illegal gun possession.
Charged in the crime is James Duane Ortley, who is alleged to have killed Evan Denny of St. Paul, Joseph Goodwin of Minneapolis and Merelle White of Red Lake as he sat with them in a car. A fourth victim, Leras Rainey, also of Minneapolis, died in the hospital.
According to the Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Ortley and murder victim Goodwin were arrested back in February in connection to a “crime spree in south Minneapolis” that involved the shooting of a man through a bedroom window. Goodwin and two others were charged but Ortley was not.
Fox News is reporting that Ortley is an alleged gang member. The network is also looking at the wave of violence as a byproduct of anti-police policies dating back to the 2020 murder of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police. A former candidate for Minnesota attorney general, Republican Jim Schultz, told Fox News, “Minneapolis, sadly, is experiencing the tragic consequences of years of anti-police rhetoric and failed leadership from the Minneapolis State Council and the lunatic county prosecutor of Hennepin County in which Minneapolis sits. When city officials demonize law enforcement and slash police budgets and refuse to prosecute the criminals, the results are bought on the streets.”
According to the Fox report, Ortley has faced criminal charges over the past 15 years, including a stabbing in a bar in 2021 for which he was sentenced to 39 months in prison and five years’ probation. However, the court reportedly stayed the sentencing order.
In 2023, Gov. Tim Walz, who ran unsuccessfully for the vide presidency last year alongside former Vice President Kamala Harris, signed what his office called “historic gun safety” legislation, including so-called “Universal background checks,” but it didn’t prevent the suspect from being armed. The background check requirement applies to private party transfers of handguns and semiautomatic firearms.
At the time, Walz called the bill “commonsense, life-saving legislation.”
