1.) Former House Minority Leader Marty Seifert is poised to jump into the gubernatorial race with a trio of events on Thursday. Seifert’s candidacy has ...

Dayton has asked Department of Human Services Commissioner Lucinda Jesson to suspend any provisional releases from the Minnesota Sex Offender Program until a special task force and legislators can address concerns about the constitutionality of potentially locking up offenders for life.

**UPDATED** GOP Reps. Brian Johnson and Nick Zerwas are raising concerns about plans to transfer six civilly committed sex offenders to a facility in Cambridge. In a letter to Minnesota Department of Human Services Commissioner Lucinda Jesson, the legislators questioned whether the plan will endanger the public.

Raymond Messer, who has been civilly committed as a sexually dangerous person since 2011, committed suicide on Friday at the Minnesota Sex Offender Program's Moose Lake facility, according to multiple sources familiar with the incident.

The Senate passed legislation on Tuesday making significant changes to the state's trouble civil commitment program for sex offenders with bipartisan support. The House version of the bill continues to face opposition from Republicans.

Rep. Tina Liebling vowed that she would pull her bill proposing changes to Minnesota’s troubled civil commitment program for sex offenders if Republicans asked for a roll call vote. The Rochester DFLer feared that Republicans would use any recorded vote to smear DFLers as soft on sex offenders when campaign season rolls around.

Legislation making significant changes to the state’s troubled civil commitment program for sex offenders appears to be all but dead following a Friday setback in the House Judiciary Committee.

Legislation that would change how dangerous sex offenders are indefinitely detained cleared the Senate Finance Committee on Wednesday with bipartisan support. The bill is now cleared to be taken up on the Senate floor.

Rep. Debra Hilstrom, DFL-Brooklyn Center, has introduced legislation that would require civilly committed sex offenders who commit felonies to serve prison time. Currently some individuals are placed on probation instead of being sent to prison.

A federal judge has ordered the creation of a five-member expert panel to review the treatment regimen at the Minnesota Sex Offender Program. The evaluation team has been directed to report back to the court with its findings by April 15.