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Are There Better Ways to Deal With Radicalized Teens?
The federal indictment against 18-year-old Sheikhdoon Abdullahi Mohamud for allegedly planning to open fire at the Mall of America sure does “raise questions,” as dodgy news headlines like to put it.
The feds arrested Mohamud on Tuesday in Richfield after an agent he believed to be a member of ISIS sold him an AK-47. A “confidential source” had been in communication with Mohamud for nearly two years, during which, according to the indictment, he made antisemitic and other hateful comments and threats, expressed a desire to travel to Somalia and join ISIS or Al-Shabaab, and eventually said he would commit mass murder at the mall.
And now, my questions:
- The investigation began in December 2024, which means Mohamud was possibly 16, 17 at the oldest when the investigation began. Is the most effective counterterrorism strategy to monitor one fucked-up teen at a time?
- What were the communications between the source and Mohamud like? What role did the feds play in fostering Mohamud’s radicalization? I’m guessing the source did not respond to the teen’s violent, disturbing messages with something like, “Hey man, you’re saying some crazy shit. You should get help.”
- The FBI approached Mohamud’s parents in 2025. His father referred them to his attorney. Has the federal government reflected on how its actions have given Somali-American parents cause to shield their children from its agents, thus interfering with the feds' ability to take preventative measures in instances like this?
- Making the announcement on Wednesday was U.S. Attorney Daniel Rosen, a Trump appointee who has proven himself to be a real team player. After an ICE agent shot Renee Good, it was Rosen who instructed everyone in his office not to speak to the press, and Rosen who announced there would be no joint federal investigation with the Minnesota BCA. What sort of instructions about a case like this has Rosen received from the highly politicized Trump Department of Justice?
- And also, a question for the Star Tribune: Why does the story about the indictment include two paragraphs about gang violence without any assertion that Mohamud was in a gang?
- Finally, a question for all of us: How can we best direct our resources to prevent teen boys of all ethnicities from becoming radicalized and violent men?
Public Defenders Even More Swamped Than Usual
The Office of the Legislative Auditor has released a report stating that “The Minnesota Board of Public Defense has not adequately managed public defender workloads or addressed ongoing management and oversight concerns.” The board, which oversees the state’s public defender system, has allowed caseloads to balloon, leaving attorneys overworked and clients under-defended.
According to the audit, 600 public defenders handled 135,000 cases last year—that’s 225 cases per lawyer. Public defenders have expressed their own dissatisfaction with management in recent years: Minnesota State Public Defender Bill Ward was reappointed in 2022 despite a no-confidence vote from rank-and-file PDs.
The Paperback Exchange Is (Paper)Back
Well, this is a pleasant surprise (for a change): The late, lamented Paperback Exchange has acquired a new building. Tuesday the business’s Facebook account announced the purchase of 5000 Oliver Ave. in southwest Minneapolis, just down the street from its old site on 50th & Penn.
Following a water main break, the store was flooded in February 2025, destroying much of its inventory. Structural damage made rehabbing the property impractical. (Revisit these very sad photos from the aftermath.) In the time since, the biz has been popping up at events to peddle their wares, and will continue to do so until it reopens.
Budgets. How Do They Work?
How do city budgets work? Let’s hear from a guy who actually works on city budgets. “Mr. St. Paul” himself, Tom Basgen, is the legislative aide to St. Paul Ward 3 Council Member Saura Jost, and he published a handy budgetsplainer earlier this week.
Our big takeaway from this? ”Half of our budget is spent on Cops and Cars (47%) and if you’re a person who wants to solve finances with cuts and you’re not talking about cutting either of those two things then not only are you not taking the budget seriously, you’re not even taking your own premise seriously,” Basgen writes.
He also addresses why property taxes are rising in St. Paul, as well as in so many municipalities, urban and suburban; offers his take on federal taxes (“Melvin Carter never spent your money on a cruise missile”); shares asides about 19th century Progressive reformer Henry George; and states, “I genuinely, truly, believe that Municipal Government is the highest functioning form of government."
