Residents of an affluent Minneapolis suburb flocked to a City Council meeting this week to call for stricter car theft laws after a local mother and her 13-year-old son were forced from their vehicle in the family’s driveway.
The brazen Aug. 17 theft in the Democratic-run city sparked outrage in wealthy Minnetonka – an uproar that erupted at Monday’s well-attended City Council meeting.
Hundreds gathered at Government House to express their disgust at the situation and express concern over the violent attack on victim Kelly Beason and her child that was captured on video.
Romell R. Lewis was arrested Tuesday and is accused of cynically driving Beason out of the store before he and three unidentified teenagers launched the brazen theft in front of her home.
Residents last night called for tougher laws in the city, where car thefts have skyrocketed since the disastrous “Defund the Police” movement following George Floyd’s death in May 2020.
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Residents of an affluent Minneapolis suburb flocked to a City Council meeting this week to call for stricter car theft laws after a local mother had her car stolen right out of her driveway last month
The Aug. 17 incident was captured on a neighbor’s surveillance camera and has since sparked outrage in wealthy Minnetonka – an uproar that eventually erupted before a packed council on Monday
Several attendees, including Beason’s husband, Craig, called for this to be the first case in the county to make use of a newly passed law that provides harsher penalties for car thieves. The law, passed in July, stipulates that offenders will be punished with a prison sentence of up to 13 years.
As Craig took the podium, he warned that the same crime – which in this case occurred in front of the couple’s 13-year-old son – could happen to anyone and blamed the Twin Cities district attorney for such brazen acts admitted despite… recent arrest.
“I think the reason I’m here is because I’m tired of this,” Craig Beason told assembled attendees in a crowded procession on Monday.
“We are tired of crime.” “We want to know what we can do to bring about change.”
Others made similar calls, although violent crime remains exceedingly rare in the suburb and is largely limited to nearby Minneapolis, where car thefts have increased this year.
Next, cops announced what they called a breakthrough not only in the Beasons’ case but in a series of similar vehicle thefts around the city, with the arrest of one of the men they believed had stolen from the victim.
Suspect Lewis, of Milwaukee, is currently being held in the Hennepin County Jail on $200,000 bail after being arrested during a traffic stop in St. Paul on Tuesday.
His first court appearance is scheduled for Wednesday afternoon, where prosecutors will allege he attacked Beason and her 13-year-old son in their driveway while three others, believed to be teenagers, stole their SUV.
The charges filed indicate that prosecutors responded to residents’ calls to take action against the criminals responsible for this particular theft, which was caught on a neighbor’s surveillance camera and sparked heated discussions about public safety.
Lewis is charged with aggravated robbery and burglary and is the first in the state to be charged with first-degree auto theft. This is a new law passed in Minnesota last month that conforms to sentencing guidelines for third-degree murder.
Victim Kelly Beason and husband Craig said their family was forced to live in fear after the incident, which occurred in broad daylight and served as a continuation of a crime spree in neighboring Minneapolis
“I think the reason I’m here is because I’m tired of this,” Craig Beason told assembled attendees in a crowded procession on Monday. “We are tired of crime.” “We want to know what we can do to bring about change.”
Hundreds gathered at Government House to express their disgust at the violent attack, which was filmed and occurred as the mother was unloading groceries. Since then, it has sparked heated debates about public safety
Others made similar calls, although violent crime remains exceedingly rare in the suburb and is largely limited to nearby Minneapolis, where car thefts have increased this year
The day after residents called for action, St. Paul police officers arrested the man they believed was seen in the footage hitting the mother: 21-year-old Romell R. Lewis of Milwaukee. He is the first in the state to face first-degree carjacking, a new, tough law passed last month
It was passed by the Minnesota Sentencing Guidelines Commission on July 27 by a vote of 7-2 and went into effect on August 1. It makes auto theft cases where the victim is assaulted a more serious Level 9 felony.
As a result, penalties range from about 7 to about 13 years in prison, depending on the criminal record – as opposed to the four-year sentence that was common when car thefts were often punished as aggravated robberies.
Not just on Monday, but over the past four years, calls for change from annoyed citizens have given way as car theft has emerged as one of the Twin Cities’ biggest problems since 2019, particularly after the pandemic-related death of George Floyd in May 2020.
Between 2019 and 2020, the number of car thefts in the state increased more than fivefold, with homicides rising to their second-highest level ever as the city was devastated by lockdowns and protests following Floyd’s death at the hands of a Minneapolis police officer.
In 2021, nearly two people per day were robbed in Minneapolis – a statistic nearly matched in nearby St. Paul, where car thefts have stalled somewhat in the past two years since then, up 36 percent this year compared to decreased at the same time in 2022.
The number of car thefts also fell by 50 percent from 40 to 20 over the same period.
However, both crimes remain prevalent in Minneapolis, with the city seeing a 77 percent increase in motor vehicle thefts in the first six months of 2023 – likely forcing lawmakers to act with the latest guidance.
Lewis and other accomplices confronted the woman and her son in their driveway on August 17 after they returned home from grocery shopping
They drove away in the family’s car after attacking both victims. The attack was captured on another resident’s doorbell camera
Police tracked the vehicle and suspects via GPS to a business in Edina. Surveillance video of that encounter helped investigators identify the suspect
On Monday, many — including Gleason’s husband — called on lawmakers to not only make an arrest but also make an example by subsequently filing charges under the new law.
These calls came even though the August incident was the first and only car theft in the city this year, and there was only one car theft the year before.
Still, residents of the wealthy western enclave voiced their thoughts.
“We, the law-abiding people of this community, have had enough,” said a resident of the suburb of about 50,000 as they took the podium.
Another added: “If these kind of car thefts and [some] Given the prevalence of guns in a community like this, something has to be done.’
As for the victim’s husband, his focus during his time at the podium was on Hennepin County and Minnesota District Attorney Mary Moriarty.
He argued that her position was that she would not be prosecuted for crimes like this [carjackings]since her election in 2022 and called the recent spike in thefts in nearby Minneapolis a result of her policies.
‘I find [it] “This is absolutely irresponsible at best,” he said. “The only person who can do anything about this right now is the Hennepin District Attorney.”
The very next day, cops announced they had made an arrest and planned to make an example of Lewis — who they said was the mastermind of a series of similar robberies in Minneapolis.
Capt. Andy Gardner of the Minnetonka Police Department said in a statement, “This is a significant development in a series of cases that have occurred in the Twin Cities over the past few weeks.”
“This is the first case in Hennepin County to utilize a new law that provides harsher penalties for violent carjacking offenders.”
As Craig took the podium, he focused on Minnesota District Attorney Mary Moriarty, who he said “took the position” that she would not be prosecuted for crimes like this [carjackings]’ since his election in 2022
Not just on Monday, but over the past four years, demands from annoyed citizens gave way to change as carjacking has proven to be one of the biggest problems in the Twin Cities since 2019, particularly after the pandemic death of George Floyd in May 2020
An accompanying criminal complaint filed with Lewis’ arrest revealed that police tracked Gleasons’ SUV and four suspects via GPS to a store in Edina, where surveillance video helped investigators identify Lewis.
A warrant was subsequently issued for his arrest, which occurred weeks later during the aforementioned traffic stop in St. Paul.
The complaint also revealed how investigators believe Lewis and the other suspects – who remain at large as of Thursday – attacked the victim on the morning of the incident and followed her back to her home.
They also expressed the belief that Lewis was the one who beat Gleason in the footage as she returned to her car after briefly leaving it unattended while another of the suspects forcibly dragged her away from the car
Beason recalled to Fox News on Wednesday how the suspects committed the crime by following her home from the grocery store and even going into her garage where her husband’s car was parked – before settling for hers.
“I saw a few people walking up our driveway and ran into the garage to see what was going on.”
She told police that at that moment she shouted to her son to call the police – encouraging the child to leave the garage and into the driveway with his cell phone in his hand.
Lewis allegedly ran from the woman towards the boy, pushed the child to the ground, dragged him behind him and tried to take his cell phone. He and his accomplices were then able to drive off. Both victims remained uninjured.
Still, Craig said at Monday’s City Council meeting that his son still has “trauma” from the ordeal.
“He wakes up in the middle of the night to every car driving down the street – and thinks someone is coming back,” he said.
He told KTSP-TV on Tuesday that he hopes the first-degree carjacking charge against Lewis remains.
“It was really traumatic. I mean, being attacked on a Thursday at 11 a.m. in your front yard, in your driveway?” Beason told the local news station after the suspect’s arrest.
“The harsher sentences are something that absolutely needs to be implemented and we need to put fear into these individuals that if they commit these crimes they will be sent to prison for a long time.”
Longtime Minnetonka Mayor Brad Wiersum told KSTP he agreed – and wanted Lewis to face the maximum sentence allowed by state law.
“I am grateful for the new, stricter law on car theft,” he said Tuesday.
“I hope this is a case of car theft that can be prosecuted to the full extent of this law.”