What are the opening hours?

Monday 8am - 4:30pm Tuesday 8am - 4:30pm Wednesday 8am - 4:30pm Thursday 8am - 4:30pm Friday 8am - 4:30pm

http://www.co.cass.mn.us/government/county_directory/attorney/index.php

Cass County Attorney's Office, 303 Minnesota Avenue W, Walker, MN (2026)

09/08/2026

Cass County Attorney Ben Lindstrom discusses:

Truth-in-Taxation. Every year the County must set a levy that determines what property taxes will be for the following year. These taxes are used to fund essential services like law enforcement and road maintenance. Minnesota Statute § 275.065 requires a proposed levy be set by September 30th and that notice of this proposal be sent to each taxpayer between November 10th and November 24th. After these notices are sent, public meetings are held so the public can comment on the proposed levy amounts, after which the County Board of Commissioners adopts a final levy that must be no more than the proposed levy.

Cass County consistently maintains one of the lowest effective property tax rates in Minnesota by aggressively pursuing non-levy revenue to fund its operations. For example, the County Attorney’s Office partnered with Sheriff Bryan Welk and Probation Director Jim Schneider to purchase protective equipment for the Emergency Response Team and alcohol monitors for our Wellness Court program. Additionally, our Office funds a Certified Student Attorney each summer by using grant dollars from Sourcewell.

While each of these things in isolation might seem insignificant, when each department consistently takes advantage of such opportunities, the savings to Cass County property taxpayers is in the millions. This year, the County Board set a preliminary budget of $102.7 million; however, the anticipated levy will be no more than $37.3 million. This means over $60 million of local government services are being funded from non-levy sources.

06/01/2026

Cass County Attorney Ben Lindstrom discusses: The Dimler Amendment and Traffic Accountability

We receive quite a few questions at the Cass County Attorney's Office about how speeding tickets affect your driving record and insurance rates. There is a lot of misinformation out there about a specific piece of Minnesota law known as “the Dimler Amendment” to Minnesota Statute § 171.12. This provision was passed by the Minnesota Legislature as a shield for drivers who commit lower-level speeding violations. If you meet the narrow criteria, the State is legally prohibited from recording the ticket on your permanent driving record, meaning insurance companies cannot use it to increase your rates.

While this creates a great benefit for drivers, it only applies in narrow and defined circumstances: In a 55 mph zone, your speed must be 10 mph or less over the limit. In a 60 mph zone, it must be 5 mph or less over the limit. Also, the exceptions are significant. These protections do not apply if you are speeding in a school zone, residential area, or an urban street under 55 mph. They also do not apply on 65 or 70 mph interstates, if you hold a Commercial Driver’s License, or if you are cited for driving at a speed greater than reasonable for conditions.

Drivers and defense attorneys in traffic matters often ask our attorneys for a plea agreement that does not result in a traffic violation conviction. Under this type of agreement, a driver pays a fee, stays out of trouble, and the ticket is entirely dismissed after a period of time. Because Minnesota Statute § 171.12 Subdivision 6 exists, our office is far less likely to agree to these non-conviction dismissals for standard speeding tickets. This is because the safety net is already built into the law and a second layer of leniency from a prosecutor is not necessary. Under § 171.12, drivers still plead guilty, pay the fine (ensuring accountability) while at the same time their insurance premiums remain unaffected. Furthermore, monitoring non-conviction agreements requires significant time and oversight from staff and the courts. Such resource-heavy agreements are reserved for more appropriate and severe situations involving risk and resource management.

It is also important to recognize that our local law enforcement officers frequently provide this break on the front end. State Patrol Troopers, Deputies, and Police Officers routinely exercise roadside discretion. If they clock someone going over the limit, they will often write the citation for a lower, Dimler-eligible speed right there on the road. They do this specifically to give drivers a break, allowing them to simply pay the ticket, secure the insurance protection built into the law, and avoid the court process entirely.

A Dimler-eligible ticket is not a dismissal. You still violated the law, you still have to pay the fine, and law enforcement maintains a record of it. Our goal is always to do right by the law while keeping our county roads safe for everyone. Please watch your speed, look out for your neighbors, and drive safely.

05/13/2026

Cass County Attorney Ben Lindstrom discusses: What happens when an opposing campaign or former volunteer acquires their opponent’s expired website address and then uses it to redirect web traffic to their competing website?

As an initial matter, the Cass County Attorney’s Office is responsible for prosecuting criminal violations of Minnesota election law. However, under Minnesota Statute § 211B.32, a fair campaign practices violation cannot be prosecuted unless it has been reported to the Minnesota Court of Administrative Hearings (formerly known as the Office of Administrative Hearings or OAH). If a violation is found, this body may refer the complaint to the appropriate County Attorney for consideration.

The answer to the question of whether a website redirect is ultimately criminal is nuanced. In lawyer speak, that means “it depends” on the specific facts and circumstances of the situation. For example, use of a misleading page with the intent to impede the right to vote or containing information known to be materially false can be a gross misdemeanor under Minnesota Statute § 211B.075. Also, failing to appropriately attribute responsibility for certain campaign preparations or expenditures can be a misdemeanor under Minnesota Statute § 211B.04.
Again, most of these complaints should be directed to the Minnesota Court of Administrative Hearings before consideration of criminal charges would be appropriate.

While the County Attorney may not be able to immediately prosecute every violation of campaign laws (either because there has not been a referral as noted above, or the matter cannot meet the high standard of proof beyond a reasonable doubt associated with criminal matters), an aggrieved party is not without legal remedies. In a civil lawsuit, the standard of proof is much lower, and the theories of liability can be different.

In the context of an appropriated website domain, the federal Anticybersquatting Consumer Protection Act – Title 15 United States Code § 1125 – can carry civil penalties of up to $100,000 for registering a person’s name or trade brand in bad faith. Also, candidates can file administrative complaints with the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN). While this does require a fee, it can result in the return of a misappropriated domain. Finally, depending on the circumstances, there may be other causes of action for breach of fiduciary duties or misappropriation of identity. Ultimately, these civil legal causes of action are not handled by the County Attorney’s Office and consultation with a private attorney would be needed for advice about the merits of any such pursuits.

For more information about fair campaign processes, you can contact the Minnesota Secretary of State or the Minnesota Court of Administrative Hearings.

05/05/2026

Cass County Attorney Ben Lindstrom reports:

Albert Ammerman appeared in Cass County District Court on May 4, 2026, and pleaded guilty to ineligible possession of a fi***rm and fleeing police in a motor vehicle. Immediate sentencing was requested, and the Honorable Jana Austad sentenced Ammerman to serve 60 months with the Department of Corrections for the fi***rm charge and 12 months on the fleeing charge. These sentences are consistent with the Minnesota Sentencing Guidelines.

According to the criminal complaints filed by the Cass County Attorney’s Office, on November 1, 2025, Ammerman was known to have a warrant and a cancelled driver’s license. A Cass County Deputy observed him failing to stop for a stop sign and attempted to stop him. Ammerman fled south on Highway 6 and then west on County Road 7. The pursuit was ultimately terminated for public safety reasons because Ammerman was known to law enforcement. The Deputy then contacted Ammerman by phone and convinced him to pull over. Contact was made with Ammerman who was inside his vehicle. Ammerman would only open his window a crack and locked his door. The Deputy spent nearly one and one-half hours trying to negotiate with Ammerman to get him to exit his vehicle. Ammerman did not comply. When the Deputy attempted to force entry into the vehicle, Ammerman sped off in the vehicle.

On February 10, 2026, Ammerman’s sister contacted law enforcement and advised she had located a fi***rm belonging to him. Ammerman was ineligible to possess fi***rms because of an Arizona conviction for felony conspiracy to commit ma*****na transport or sale. The investigation revealed that Ammerman had arrived at his sister’s residence on February 6 and was sitting at their kitchen table when a fi***rm was observed in his possession. When confronted about the fi***rm, Ammerman told his sister “you can’t go anywhere without one these days,” and indicated one was in the chamber. Ammerman then unloaded the fi***rm. He was also captured on the home’s Ring camera putting the gun in the small of his back. Later that day she and her husband were ice fishing when Ammerman arrived in a vehicle. He entered their fish house and emptied his pockets on the table. This included the fi***rm. Shortly thereafter, Ammerman saw law enforcement vehicles approaching the fish house and he fled on foot. Law enforcement subsequently located him and took him into custody on his outstanding warrant.

04/23/2026

Cass County Attorney Ben Lindstrom discusses: MN Permit to Carry

My wife is taking a permit to carry class this weekend. This begged the question: If the Second Amendment guarantees the right to “keep and bear” arms, why does she need a permit at all to exercise this right, let alone pay a fee to the Sheriff’s Office to process her application?

The short answer is: the US Supreme Court has allowed certain permitting schemes, the State of Minnesota has directed local Sheriffs to implement a permitting scheme without providing funding to do so, and a Sheriff’s duties are immense while the budget is limited.

The attorney answer is of course longer: In New York State R***e & Pistol Assn. Inc. v. Bruen, the United States Supreme Court struck down New York’s “may issue” licensing regime and ruled the Second Amendment protects a right to carry a handgun for self-defense in public. This decision did not strike down licensing requirements all together; rather, it created a prohibition against discretionary and subjective permitting schemes that were designed to deny the rights of law abiding citizens in practice. While “exorbitant” fees are subject to constitutional challenge, New York’s fee at the time was $340 for a three-year license.

Unlike other States that have enacted constitutional or permit-less carry provisions, the State Legislature of Minnesota has implemented a permitting process. Minnesota Statute 624.714 requires people to apply to their local Sheriff for a permit if they wish to carry a fi***rm in public. Before issuing that permit, the statute goes on to require the Sheriff to conduct a prescribed background check. While a permit is good for five years, this background check must be repeated annually.

With the enactment of these permitting provisions, the Legislature did not include implementation funding. Instead, the statute allows a Sheriff to charge a “fee in an amount not to exceed the actual and reasonable direct cost of processing the application or $100, whichever is less.” Of this fee, a portion must be forwarded to the State Commissioner of Public Safety.

As of December 31, 2025, there were 3,852 valid permits in Cass County and the Sheriff’s Office processed 801 applications for that entire year. Each of these must undergo the unfunded mandated annual vetting process required by Minnesota statute. This process does not happen in a vacuum and requires staff time and resources. To put it in perspective for Cass County, in 2025 these costs were $86,663.65. Permit fees only generated $63,425. Thus, it presently costs the Sheriff’s Office thousands of dollars more each year to process permits than the Office collects in application fees.

The Sheriff’s budget is limited and consists of taxpayer money. If the Sheriff absorbs the entire cost of implementing Minnesota’s permitting process, the Sheriff then has less money for staff and safety equipment. If it comes down to deciding between putting a patrol Deputy on the road or requiring the nominal statutory fee for her permit to carry, I will be advising my wife to pay the fee when she applies for her permit this year.

02/04/2026

Cass County Attorney Ben Lindstrom Discusses: Civil Disobedience and fi***rms...practical realities and the law.

The goal is to avoid bad outcomes that cannot be cured. Reality requires decision to be made in the moment. There is no 360 degree camera footage and frame by frame analysis with Monday morning quarterbacking before a human must decide to act in the moment. The time it took you to read this post is more time than law enforcement has to make some life and death decisions.

Law to consider: Minnesota Statute 609.71

"When three or more persons assembled disturb the public peace by an intentional act...each participant who is armed with a dangerous weapon or knows that any other participant is armed with a dangerous weapon is guilty of riot second degree and may be sentenced to imprisonment for not more than five years or to payment of a fine of not more than $10,000, or both.

01/29/2026

Cass County Attorney Ben Lindstrom discusses: Reality versus Monday Morning Quarter Backing.

Law enforcement is out there to keep people safe and to enforce the laws that are on the books. They are human like you and me. They have kids and spouses and other family members. Their goal is to do the job with merit and then go home. We often see things on television or social media that try to analyze a decision that needs to be made in one second or less. The media folks then take a frame-by-frame video and ask experts who have had days to opine about the situation.

I hope that everyone remembers that our law enforcement is out there because they believe in our community. They are out there to keep us safe. If they must make a decision in moments that the media disagrees with after hours of slow-motion video and the absence of context…I believe our community understands we cannot Monday Morning Quarterback the folks we ask to be there when we need help.

Let investigations play out. Take the time to know all we can know before reaching a conclusion. Also understand practical realities. If we ask law enforcement to protect us and enforce the law...there are no absolutes. There are grey areas where decision have to be made and the media with $100,000 experts and frame by frame analysis can absolutly disagree with a human who had to make the same analysis in one second or less.

01/20/2026

Cass County Attorney Ben Lindstrom Reports:

On January 12, 2026, Joseph Allen Jones Jr. appeared in Cass County District Court. Previously, he was found guilty by a Cass County Jury of Ineligible Possession of a Fi***rm and Fifth Degree Controlled Substance Crime. This case went back to an incident that occurred on November 24, 2024, that involved Deputy Bill Conner responding to a call for service where Jones was seen fleeing from a vehicle along with others. A fi***rm was recovered and sent to the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension for forensic testing and ultimately connected to Jones.

Of note during this case is the fact that it was one of the last that Deputy Bill Conner worked as a Cass County Deputy before retiring. He even came out of retirement to testify. Like many others, during my tenure with Deputy Conner, this conviction could not have been obtained without him. The case was presented to the jury by Assistant County Attorneys Chelsea Langton and Karl Zinkl.

Jones was also sentenced for another incident involving Ineligible Possession of a Fi***rm that occurred on June 14, 2025. This case involved an encounter with the defendant involving Deputy Luke Rasmus and Deputy Jesse Iverson. Jones was stopped and a fi***rm was found in his vehicle. Jones admitted the sh***un found in the vehicle was his. The performance of Deputy Rasmus and Iverson in this case gave us the legal leverage we needed to make results happen.

The District Court ultimately sentenced Jones to serve 60 months with the commissioner of corrections. This sentence is consistent with the Minnesota Sentencing Guidelines. These prosecutions would not have been possible without the involved law enforcement personnel. Furthermore, presenting cases to a jury can consume many resources. Sheriff Bryan Welk and our County Commissioners have always supported the County Attorney’s work in making such things possible when the facts allow us to pursue such things.

01/09/2026

Cass County Attorney Ben Lindstrom discusses why someone can be arrested for a crime but not convicted of it:

The legal system uses a variety of standards when it comes to how much certainty there must be before government action can be taken. One can think of it as a continuum of certainty, with some actions requiring less certainty and others requiring more.

Generally, the more permanent the action is, the more certainty is required. For example, an arrest without more is measured in hours or days and only requires law enforcement to have probable cause to believe a person has committed a crime. A conviction, on the other hand, can have lifelong consequences and requires the County Attorney’s Office to meet the much higher standard of proof beyond a reasonable doubt.

How does one measure these standards? Unfortunately, there are no mathematical formulas or numerical probabilities. Instead, the law attempts to use words and concepts to convey what these terms mean.

The probable cause standard requires that there be a “fair probability” or “reasonable grounds” to believe that a crime has been committed. Put another way, probable cause exists if, under the totality of the circumstances, the objective facts observed in light of an officer’s training and experience, create an honest and strong suspicion that the person arrested committed a crime.

Proof beyond a reasonable doubt is the highest standard of certainty used in any legal proceeding. The law defines it as such proof as ordinarily prudent people would act upon in their most important affairs. A reasonable doubt is a doubt based upon reason and common sense. It does not mean a fanciful or capricious doubt, nor does it mean beyond all possibility of doubt. Essentially, all reasonable alternative explanations for the crime must be eliminated before a person may be convicted.

Thus, law enforcement can legitimately arrest someone when they have probable cause to believe a crime has been committed, but that same person might not be convicted for that same crime when the higher level of certainty is lacking.

Cass County Attorney's Office

09/08/2026

06/01/2026

05/13/2026

05/05/2026

04/23/2026

02/04/2026

01/29/2026

01/20/2026

01/09/2026

Address

Opening Hours

Telephone

Website

Alerts

Shortcuts

Share

Category

Listing takedown request

Monday	8am - 4:30pm
Tuesday	8am - 4:30pm
Wednesday	8am - 4:30pm
Thursday	8am - 4:30pm
Friday	8am - 4:30pm