Pioneer PINE CITY
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 10, 2015
VOL. 130 NO. 37 www.pinecitymn.com $1.00
DRAGONS FIRED UP: Cross-country, tennis, volleyball and football results. P11
Lanerd pleads guilty to assault of Pine City teen BY MIKE GAINOR EDITOR@PINECITYMN.COM
Joshua Wolfgang Lanerd, 20, of Cambridge has pled guilty to third-degree criminal sexual conduct for raping a teenage girl taken from a Pine City park on April 26. In exchange for the guilty plea, charges of first degree criminal sexual conduct, kidnapping and false imprisonment were dropped by the Pine County Attorney’s Office. In the criminal complaint, the victim explained that she had been at the park by Pine City Elementary School with friends on the afternoon of April 26. A male she had met about four months earlier – Joshua Lanerd – was also at
the park along with two other males (Cody Eugene Pokela, 18, of North Branch and Daniel Wade Soderberg, 24, of Cambridge) she did not know. The victim said the men told her they were going to leave. She walked over to their red pickup truck to say goodbye. Lanerd told her he wanted her to give him a hug and Pokela opened the truck door. The victim said that Lanerd then pulled her into the back seat. She said she asked what they were doing and nobody responded. Then Pokela began to drive away with her inside. Pokela drove them to a remote area near the Snake River Dam. According to the SEE GUILTY, PAGE 14
City reducing amount of fluoride in water supply STAFF REPORT NEWS@PINECITYMN.COM
LANCE FURBER | THE PIONEER
Heels over head for Pine City Rodeo The action was hot during the saddle bronc competition at the Heidelberger’s Farm Equipment grandstand for the ninth annual Pine City Championship PRCA Rodeo Labor Day weekend. More rodeo photos on Page 10.
The Pine City Council has approved a reduction in fluoride levels in city water as recommended by the Minnesota Department of Health – and as a cost-savings measure. According to the Minnesota Department of Health, there are approximately 620 cities and towns in Minnesota which must add fluoride to their water to meet state standards. However, those standards have changed. Previously, municipalities were required to maintain a fluoride concentration between 0.9 and 1.5 milligrams per liter. But on May 21, the Minnesota Department of Health set new guidelines at a level of 0.7 milligrams per liter. Public Works Supervisor Maury Montbriand said that
current levels of fluoride in Pine City water are satisfactory but the state health department was allowing cities to request a variance to reduce levels to the new recommended amount of 0.7 milligrams per liter. He said the city’s equipment is capable of making that adjustment and the reduction will reduce the city’s costs. The reduction went into effect immediately. The Minnesota Department of Health requires water fluoridation to prevent and control tooth decay, particularly in children, and describes fluoride as a “safe and effective agent” for protecting teeth. At optimal levels, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that community water fluoridation reduces childhood cavities by approximately 18 to 40 percent.
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