That’s what Natasha Korby told us about her experience with the Duluth City Attorney’s Office after her ex-boyfriend allegedly pushed her into a laundry sink and down his back steps.

He was sent to a batterer’s program but not placed on probation — his charges will be dropped if he completes the terms of his plea deal.

Following a monthslong investigation, Jana Hollingsworth and I found that nearly two out of three people the city prosecutes for domestic assault receive unsupervised probation or less. That happened even in cases where victims told police they feared for their lives, and when bleeding and fresh bruises were documented at the scene.

In other work this fall, I published the last of my Workforce of the Future pieces, this one on folks blowing off the traditional retirement age either out of desire or necessity. I also took a data-focused look at severe weather and what the Northland might expect with a changing climate.

I also managed to get ahead of the news that Minnesota-born brand SuperAmerica is becoming Speedway, follow up on who deserves credit for the great ruby slipper recovery and scratch out an analysis of Minnesota’s 8th District Congressional race.

More recently I took a look at the challenges presented by our record-low unemployment rate and what to expect from another round of efforts to better protect elderly and vulnerable Minnesotans. I presented the problem in a map and the solutions in the story.

 

I also attended the sentencing of Don Jamsa in Grand Rapids, which came decades after the crimes that forever changed the lives of his relatives.

Already I’ve started work on two projects that will take most of my attention in 2019, and a third — our first child — will take the rest. Happy holidays and thanks for reading.