Meeker County Sheriff Brian Cruze wants the public to be aware of some new laws and some changes to laws that have taken effect. He is on the Minnesota Sheriff’s Association Legislative Committee.
Sheriff Cruze there are some traffic-related law changes such as the temporary plates which used to be a 21-day piece of paper in your back window which is now a paper license plate that is good for 60-days; and child restraint laws that are based more on a child’s size than their age. He says motorcycles can now do lane-splitting in Minnesota, but it’s only in congested areas, so it probably won’t be seen in Meeker County.
Sheriff Cruze says there’s also a law related to flying cars which would be pretty unusual at this point, but if you’re car is capable of flying, you can’t just take off from the highway – you have to go to an airport to take off, and follow airport laws there, and highway laws when you’re driving. He says it’s now a felony to falsely report an emergency.
Sheriff Cruze says there are a few changes to firearm laws including the banning of binary triggers, and it’s no longer legal to own a firearm with a binary trigger. He says the straw purchase laws have been strengthened as a result of the shooting of officers last winter in Burnsville, so if you purchase a firearm and give it to someone who shouldn’t have it, it’s a felony.
The libraries in Litchfield, Dassel, Grove City, and Cosmos have all kinds of activities scheduled throughout the month of January. There are winter reading programs for both adults and children.
Litchfield has Baby/Toddler story time on Wednesdays from 10:15-to-10:45; preschool story time Fridays from 10-to-11 a.m.; a teen program – collaborative console gaming – Jan. 11th from 1:30-to-3 p.m.; adult book club on Jan. 14th from 12-to-12:45 p.m.; Lego night on Jan. 14th from 6:30-to-7:30 p.m.; Mystery Book Club on Jan. 15th at 7 p.m.; Knitting Club on Jan. 16th from 12:30-to-1:30 p.m.; and kid’s craft club on Jan. 21st from 4-to-5 p.m.
In Dassel, story hour is on Fridays at 10 a.m.; and Adult Book Club on Jan. 28th at 1 p.m.
In Grove City, story time is on Jan. 13th at 11 a.m.; Knitting Club is on Jan. 16th from 4-to-5 p.m.; and the ATGC Book Club will meet on Jan. 21st at 7 p.m.
In Cosmos, Diamond Painting is on Jan. 18th at 10:30 a.m. – advance registration is required; and Cosmos Creation Club is on Jan. 27th from 2-to-3 p.m.
All library programs are free to attend. The Pioneerland libraries will be closed on Monday, Jan. 20th, for Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
On Jan. 9, 1959, “Rawhide” premiered on CBS.
In 1964, The Temptations recorded the song “The Way You Do The Things You Do” at Motown Studios in Detroit.
In 1965, “The Beatles ’65” album hit number one and stayed there for nine weeks.
In 1973, the Rolling Stones’ plans to tour Asia were halted when Japan refused to grant Mick Jagger a visa. The Japanese turned down Jagger’s request because of his 1969 drug bust.
In 1977, country singer Emmylou Harris married music producer Brian Ahern. They divorced in 1984.
In 1979, “A Gift Of Song: The Music For UNICEF Concert” was held at the United Nations. Pop stars including ABBA, the Bee Gees and Rod Stewart performed, raising about $500,000 to fight world hunger. The concert was taped and broadcast by NBC.
In 1989, “The Pat Sajak Show” made its debut on late night TV, but it was unable to compete with the likes of Johnny Carson and David Letterman.
In 1990, Madonna began auditioning dancers for her 1990 world tour. She had taken out a newspaper ad that said, “Wimps and wannabes need not apply.”
In 1991, actor Delta Burke filed a lawsuit against the producers of “Designing Women.” She claimed they wrote her out of a script.
In 2012, Jay-Z released the song “Glory” that featured the cries of his 2-day-old daughter, Blue Ivy. Because she was credited, she became the youngest person to appear on a Billboard chart when it debuted at number 74 on the R&B/hip-hop songs chart.
Today’s Birthdays: Actor K Callan (“Lois and Clark”) is 89. Singer Joan Baez is 84. Guitarist Jimmy Page of Led Zeppelin is 81. Actor John Doman (“Gotham”) is 80. Singer-actor Buster Poindexter (David Johansen) is 75. Singer Crystal Gayle is 74. Actor J.K. Simmons (TV’s “The Closer,” ″Spider-Man” movies) is 70. Actor Imelda Staunton (“Harry Potter” movies, “Vera Drake”) is 69. Guitarist Eric Erlandson (Hole) is 62. Actor Joely Richardson is 60. Guitarist Carl Bell of Fuel is 58. Actor David Costabile (“Billions,” ″Breaking Bad”) is 58. Singer Dave Matthews of The Dave Matthews Band is 58. Actor Joey Lauren Adams (“Chasing Amy,” ″Big Daddy”) is 57. Actor Deon Cole (“black-ish”) is 54. Actor Angela Bettis (“Carrie,” ″Girl, Interrupted”) is 52. Actor Omari Hardwick (“Power”) is 51. Singer A.J. McLean of the Backstreet Boys is 47. Guitarist Drew Brown of OneRepublic is 41. Singer Paolo Nutini is 38. Actor Nina Dobrev (“The Vampire Diaries”) is 36. Actor Kerris Dorsey (“Ray Donovan,” ″Brothers and Sisters”) is 27. Actor Tyree Brown (“Parenthood”) is 21.