Hennepin County attorney won't charge man who caused $20K in damage to Teslas

[question everything]

Hennepin County officials say they’re asking that the man accused of damaging several Tesla vehicles in Minneapolis not face charges. Authorities arrested Dylan Adams for keying six Teslas, with the damage valued at $21,000.

Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty decided not to file charges against Adams, referring him to an adult diversion program.

In a statement, Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara said his officers were “frustrated” at Moriarty’s decision not to bring charges.

The Minneapolis Police Department did its job. It identified and investigated a crime trend, identified, and arrested a suspect, and presented a case file to the Hennepin County Attorney Office for consideration of charges. This case impacted at least six different victims and totaled over $20,000 in damages. Any frustration related to the charging decision of the Hennepin County Attorney should be directed solely at her office. Our investigators are always frustrated when the cases they poured their hearts into are declined. In my experience, the victims in these cases often feel the same.”

The Hennepin County Attorney’s Office pushed back on O’Hara’s claim that the case was “declined” and maintained that it is “holding [Adams] accountable for keying the cars.”

“We offered diversion as we often do with property damage cases when the person has no record,” the attorney’s office said. “Mr. Adams will have to complete the requirements of the program. He will also have to pay every penny in restitution to the victims. If he does not meet those requirements, we will proceed through the criminal legal system process.”

https://kstp.com/kstp-news/top-news/hennepin-county-attorney-wont-charge-man-who-caused-20k-in-damage-to-teslas/

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They showed a video of the person keying the car

Moriarty is really useless

[stillcool]

1. If he is paying for the property damage

and has no criminal record, why is Moriarty useless?

[question everything]

2. Because this is a crime? We usually charge individuals who vandalize property.

[WhiskeyGrinder]

3. And then they're usually offered probation and fined, which is what happened here. Why not streamline it?

What's wrong with diversion and restitution? Would you rather see more people in prison?

[delisen]

4. As a victim of property crime, I prefer restitution

The first time offender who burglarized my property and neighboring homes got a long prison sentence and left his wife and child destitute.

I would have much preferred he paid restitution.and fulfilled other requirements.

[MichMan]

5. How long do the victims need to wait before they receive their restitution ?

Weeks, months, years?

Courts don't seem to enforce these orders of restitution.

Example is former Detroit mayor Kwame Kilpatrick, who owes over $800, 000 in restitution and has only paid a pittance of it in the last 10 years since he agreed to pay as part of a plea bargain.

August 2024; According to the federal government, Kilpatrick still owes $831,913.70 for crimes he was convicted of more than a decade ago, including bribery, extortion and fraud. His last restitution payment of $150 was made in March.

"Kilpatrick has a history of spending his money on a lavish lifestyle rather than paying off his obligations. (He) has only made a little over $5,000 in payments towards his restitution obligation in this case. Yet, as recently as 2022, (Kilpatrick) and his wife sought to raise $800,000 to purchase a residence in a gated, luxury community in Orlando, Florida," Edmunds wrote in an order last year, in which she denied Kilpatrick's request to end his supervised release early so he could travel more freely as a pastor.

https://www.freep.com/story/news/local/michigan/detroit/2024/08/22/kwame-kilpatrick-address-residence-detroit-novi-georgia/74896710007/

[iemanja]

6. The Mpls police refused to investigate

my aunt’s car being stolen, but the keying of Tesla’s was a priority for them.

[question everything]

7. The act was caught on video

[dflprincess]

8. The Bloomington Chief of Police handled a Tesla keying case much like this a few weeks ago & was hailed as a hero

for his sensible solution.

In both cases we are talking about property crimes and, in both cases, diversion and restitution make more sense.