Cedrick’s priorities to move us forward

We are witnessing Donald Trump and his U.S. Attorneys actively undermine public confidence in our legal system, using it for personal and partisan gain while eroding accountability at the highest levels. Trump and his masked agents are acting recklessly, destabilizing our local communities, and are indifferent to the harm they inflict on our neighborhoods. This is not public safety—it is federal overreach with deadly consequences. This moment requires us to harness the strength of Minnesota’s largest public law office to stand up to Trump’s authoritarianism.

Under my leadership, the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office will never work with ICE. Additionally, when federal agents unlawfully enter homes or businesses, falsely imprison citizens, impersonate local law enforcement, intimidate witnesses, destroy property, assault or murder people, they must be held accountable in state court—where presidential pardons cannot shield them. If federal agents engage in conduct that violates Minnesota law while operating in Hennepin County, my office will review any case submitted to us for potential charges.

The Trump administration is attacking many of the programs on which Hennepin County residents rely every day, from health care to affordable housing to basic human services. The Trump administration has said that residents cannot access these longstanding programs unless the County agrees to help them with their unjust immigration enforcement, persecute our LGBTQ neighbors, and otherwise bend to their inhumane agenda. As County Attorney, I will stand up to the Trump administration by taking them to court when necessary, fighting to ensure residents can access the essential County services they need, without submitting to the radical political agenda coming out of Washington.

I believe leadership starts with listening, and victims of crime deserve to be heard. On day one as Hennepin County Attorney, I will establish a Victim & Survivor Advisory Council to ensure those who have been most impacted by crime have a meaningful voice in shaping my administration’s policies.

The victims and families who interact with the County Attorney’s Office are navigating real trauma—coping with the harm done to them or their loved ones while trying to make sense of a complex and unfamiliar legal system. We must center their experiences, support them in their healing, and prioritize communication and transparency. 

As County Attorney, I will never lose sight of victims’ need for clear information and understanding about their cases. My administration will communicate early and often. Victims' perspectives will be respected and incorporated into our decision-making. I will also advocate for expanded trauma-informed services that are culturally responsive, including relocation assistance, therapy, and counseling.

I believe victims deserve every option available. My administration will also give victims the opportunity to participate in restorative justice processes in select case types if the victims choose to. Some victims may choose restorative justice because it aligns with their values or because the traditional system feels impersonal or retraumatizing. Effective restorative justice programming centers the victim’s experience by allowing them to explain how they were harmed and receive direct answers and acknowledgment of responsibility from the person who caused the harm, while also ensuring that person is accountable for changing their behavior and not continuing to harm others. The restorative justice process should be undertaken only at the victim’s choosing and offered exclusively to victims in specific categories of lower-level cases.

Ending the scourge of gun violence will be my administration’s top priority, and as County Attorney, I will send a clear message: gun violence will not be tolerated in Hennepin County.

Growing up, I lost family members and close friends—people I loved, people full of dreams and potential—to senseless acts of gun violence. Those losses never leave you; they stay with you, shaping how you see the world. My administration will treat every shooting with the seriousness it deserves, ensuring non-fatal shootings receive the same urgent attention as homicides by assigning specialized prosecutors and investigators and working with law enforcement to improve clearance rates for these cases.

My administration will also advocate for the expansion of proven violence reduction programs, including Group Violence Intervention (GVI) and hospital-based violence intervention initiatives, to prevent retaliatory cycles before they escalate. By partnering closely with law enforcement and the community on these efforts, we will implement focused deterrence strategies that concentrate on the small number of street gangs and individuals responsible for the majority of violent crime, keeping our neighborhoods safer for everyone.

As the Chief Author of Minnesota’s Extreme Risk Protection Order Law, I am committed to using this critical tool to save lives. Individuals experiencing serious mental health crises who pose a safety risk to themselves or others often show warning signs that family members and law enforcement notice first. I will take action and leverage the authority of the County Attorney’s Office to petition the Court to temporarily prevent individuals who pose a risk to themselves or others from possessing or purchasing firearms while they get the help they need.

Transparency will be the first step in building public trust. As County Attorney, my administration will ensure that data on charging decisions is clear, easily accessible, and shared openly with the public. I will be out in communities across Hennepin County, hosting regular town halls, attending community events, and talking directly with residents about what the data means and how we are making decisions.

Trust is earned, and it requires strong relationships. As a former suburban city council member and as a lawmaker, I’ve built those relationships by listening, showing up, and working together. In addition to the backing of Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, our campaign also has earned the endorsements of labor unions, community organizations, and an expansive coalition of local leaders representing 39 cities across Hennepin County. These endorsements reflect not just broad support for this campaign but the collaborative relationships I will bring with me to the Hennepin County Attorney’s office to make real progress.

As County Attorney, my administration will prioritize open and ongoing dialogue by establishing clear, accessible communication channels. Through the office’s Community Affairs Division, we will implement structured feedback systems to regularly gather input from community leaders, neighborhood organizations, and residents of all backgrounds, enabling us to identify and address emerging issues quickly and effectively.

Transparency will be the foundation of my administration.

As an attorney representing workers for Minnesota’s largest labor union, I am well aware that wage theft—the intentional underpayment or nonpayment of wages—is widespread in Hennepin County.

Wage theft is not an accident; it is a calculated strategy to increase profits by dodging basic payroll obligations, such as Social Security taxes, unemployment insurance, and workers’ compensation, leaving everyone else to pick up the tab. In 2025, I authored and passed legislation granting County Attorneys the authority to issue administrative subpoenas for wage theft investigations. This law now enables prosecutors to properly examine relevant payroll records early on in investigations when legitimate concerns arise. As County Attorney, my administration will use this authority to hold these fraudsters accountable and fight tirelessly to ensure that workers receive every dollar they have earned—so they can provide for their families and help build stronger communities.

It does not matter whether a crime is committed on a street corner or in a corner office—as County Attorney, I will ensure accountability. My administration will aggressively prosecute financial crimes and work tirelessly to recover what was stolen from victims.

Fentanyl represents one of the most urgent public health and safety challenges facing Hennepin County. Its use and trafficking devastate individuals, tear families apart, and threaten the stability of entire communities. Fentanyl trafficking drives violent crime and has tragically claimed the lives of thousands of our county’s residents through overdose. As County Attorney, my administration will prioritize both public safety and harm reduction, while implementing strategies that address the root causes of this crisis. Our charging decisions will be grounded in accountability and fairness, with a focus on rehabilitation for individuals with substance use disorders and prosecution of traffickers who prey upon them for quick profits.

With Donald Trump's authoritarianism, we can no longer take our free and fair elections for granted. Democracy is under threat, and we must fight to protect it. Hennepin County serves over one million eligible voters across more than 400 polling places each election. As County Attorney, my administration will swiftly and impartially prosecute those who try to criminally undermine our elections—whether through voter intimidation, election fraud, or tampering with the voting process.

Domestic violence impacts not only individuals and families, but entire communities. Its effects can be seen in our schools, workplaces, healthcare systems, and neighborhoods. Ending the cycle of domestic violence cannot be the responsibility of survivors alone or of any single organization. It requires the active engagement of the Hennepin County Attorney—listening to those with lived experience, strengthening support systems, holding abusers accountable, and working together to create a culture that values safety, respect, and prevention.

As County Attorney, my administration will stand with survivors of domestic violence and support them on their path to healing and safety. I will uplift and prioritize funding for the critical work of the office’s Domestic Abuse Service Center (DASC). Through the office’s Victim Services Division and DASC, we will partner with trusted community organizations to provide resources for young people who have experienced or witnessed abuse at home. By addressing their trauma early, we can help children heal and break the cycle of violence from repeating itself in the future.

As a father, I firmly believe that it is the responsibility of adults to teach youth to understand that their actions have real-life consequences for themselves and others. Appropriate and effective accountability for youth, particularly those engaged in violent behaviors, is critical as a means of preventing future gun violence and other serious crimes such as carjacking and robbery. Improving youth outcomes will improve public safety for everyone.

We also cannot afford to wait for a young person’s behavior to escalate into violence before we take action. I will use my background in public education to form strong partnerships with schools throughout the county, focusing on early interventions that support youth and their families, prevent repeat offenses, and avoid deeper involvement in the legal system. We will work with schools and families to make sure children attend school, are actively learning during the day, and are safe at home each night. 

My administration will prioritize community-based support for youth when appropriate, while ensuring those who commit acts of violence are unable to cause further harm to themselves or others.

The Hennepin County Home School closed in 2021 due to declining use, high operational costs, and poor outcomes. This had been the County’s secure residential treatment center that housed youth referred through the juvenile justice system. Five years later, Hennepin County still does not have an effective alternative for youth who cannot safely be out in the community for a period of time. As County Attorney, I will leverage my relationships at the State Capitol to advocate for resources to provide secure residential treatment options in Hennepin County for youth who are not safe at home or out in the community.

Together, these efforts will promote accountability, opportunity, and long-term public safety in Hennepin County.

I believe that building public trust in the government is a critical responsibility of the County Attorney. As County Attorney, my administration will establish an independent Public Integrity Unit to investigate police use-of-force cases, public corruption, and civil rights violations with transparency and impartiality. They will be committed to ensuring that all charging decisions are grounded in evidence, the law, and the safety of the community—not political influence. Staffed by prosecutors with subject matter expertise, this new unit will make charging recommendations to me as the elected County Attorney, who will retain final responsibility for all charging decisions.

Local law enforcement agencies investigate crimes that are reported to them, and if they believe they have enough evidence, they can submit their cases to the County Attorney’s Office for charging decisions. As County Attorney, I will maintain collaborative relationships with local law enforcement and ensure that investigations focus on the evidence needed for attorneys to build strong cases in court. Failing to follow proper procedures during law enforcement searches leads to cases being tossed out. My administration will partner with law enforcement to ensure that these procedures are followed so that people who commit crimes can be held accountable. By communicating effectively, we can speed up the legal process for victims, protect defendants’ rights, and develop coordinated public safety strategies.

Donald Trump’s inhumane immigration policies have made it harder for justice to be served in Hennepin County. Many victims or witnesses of crime who are immigrants are too afraid to come forward, while some defendants are deported before their day in court. Everyone in Hennepin County deserves safety and justice, regardless of their immigration status. No one should fear reporting a crime or helping the County Attorney’s office by testifying in a case. As County Attorney, I will use my authority to protect immigrant victims and witnesses by certifying U and T visas for those who qualify, providing victims and witnesses with temporary immigration status as they navigate the court process.

It is a prosecutors’ ethical duty to seek justice at every stage of a case, even after a conviction has been obtained. Across the country, including in Minnesota, we have seen that wrongful convictions can occur even when prosecutors act in good faith, due to factors such as mistaken eyewitness identifications, unreliable forensic evidence, false confessions, or inadequate legal representation. Reviewing past convictions can help identify and correct these errors. Wrongful convictions are terrible for everyone – the victim and their family do not get the justice they deserve, an innocent person loses their liberty and time that they can never get back, and the person who was actually responsible for the crime avoids accountability and is free to go on and harm others.

As County Attorney, my administration will protect the integrity of the legal system and reinforce the idea that prosecutors are committed to finding the truth rather than simply securing convictions. My administration will review past convictions for evidence of innocence which will help build public trust, especially in communities that may be skeptical of the legal system, by showing accountability and transparency.

Attacks on reproductive healthcare have intensified across the country since the disastrous United States Supreme Court’s ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization. As County Attorney, I am committed to defending the bodily autonomy of individuals seeking or who have obtained abortions. I will also protect the rights and freedoms of doctors and other medical professionals providing essential medical care.

Under my administration, our office will prosecute criminal acts that aim to restrict access to reproductive healthcare or interfere with individuals’ ability to make their own healthcare decisions. We will safeguard both patients and healthcare providers from violations of their privacy that could expose them to criminal or civil actions in other jurisdictions.

Hennepin County is at the forefront of national efforts among local governments related to climate action, affordable housing, and health care access in the United States. I will partner with the County Board to advance these initiatives: building transit and other infrastructure, financing affordable housing, developing resources for homeless residents, improving our solid waste system, and restoring the financial stability of the state's only public safety net hospital (HCMC). 

All of these programs are critical to building a more sustainable and equitable future for our community, and all of them require the County Attorney’s Office to negotiate agreements, advise on policy, and navigate complex regulatory requirements. As County Attorney, I will commit the resources needed from the office to make these efforts a success.

Many residents rely on public transportation to get to school, work, concerts, sporting events, and other daily activities. With the upcoming extensions of Metro Transit’s Blue and Green light rail lines, it is essential that our public transit system is safe, comfortable, and welcoming for everyone—both residents and visitors.

As County Attorney, I will prioritize transit safety by working together with Metro Transit, coordinating with law enforcement and city attorneys, and partnering with Hennepin County social service providers to protect commuters, riders, and transit workers. When appropriate, individuals involved in low-level, non-violent offenses will be referred to behavioral health professionals and connected to addiction treatment and other supportive services.

Everyone in Hennepin County, no matter their background, deserves to live free from fear. Hate crimes—driven by bias against race, religion, gender, sexual orientation, or other identities—not only harm the victims directly but also terrorize entire groups of people. As County Attorney, my office will collaborate with community partners and local law enforcement to identify, investigate, and prosecute these offenses, to make it clear that discrimination and violence have no place in our society.