NOTHING TO SEE

Report: Lawyer Says Abuse Allegation Against Minnesota Rep. Keith Ellison Is ‘Unsubstantiated’

Attorney Susan Ellingstad was hired by Minnesota’s Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party to probe the accusation.

A lawyer investigating an accusation of physical abuse against Rep. Keith Ellison (D-MN) announced Monday that the allegation is unsubstantiated, the Associated Press reports. The AP obtained a draft report written by lawyer Susan Ellingstad, who was hired to investigate by Minnesota’s Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party, which said accuser Karen Monahan’s refusal to turn over alleged video evidence of the incident had caused her “to conclude that the allegation is unsubstantiated.” Monahan accused Ellison of “dragging her off a bed by her feet… while screaming obscenities” in 2016. Ellison denied the incident occurred, and Monahan reportedly gave “shifting explanations” for why she wouldn’t release the video. Ellison is leaving the House of Representatives to run for Minnesota attorney general. Ellingstad did not respond to an emailed request for comment from The Daily Beast but DFL Chairman Ken Martin said in a statement that the report was “released today without our knowledge by someone outside of our organization.” Martin also said that they “have decided to forward the information in the investigation to local authorities in order to let them review the contents and determine whether further investigation is warranted.”