Officer Scott Beckman was suspended in August 2016 after an investigation revealed he had falsified a search warrant and lied to a superior officer. The police chief recommended termination, but Beckman was suspended for 11 days. He was later forced out in December 2018. In addition, Beckman had pled guilty in 2012 to a traffic misdemeanor when he left the scene of an accident while off-duty. He was suspended for seven days.

In March 2017, according to the Pine Knot News, Police Chief Steve Stracek wrote to then-County Attorney Thom Pertler and informed him of Beckman's most recent suspension. Stracek said he had an ethical obligation to disclose that information, citing the U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Brady v. Maryland requiring prosecutors to turn over exculpatory materials to defense lawyers prior to trial. 

Although prosecutors had that information, it wasn't disclosed to defense attorneys, and five of the seven defendants whose convictions were later vacated pled guilty after Pertler received Stracek's letter. Their convictions, between 2017 and 2018, were for crimes including possession of drug paraphernalia and violating a domestic-abuse protection order. Because these cases were resolved with pleas, prosecutors had no legal obligations to disclose this evidence.

Daniel Lew, the chief public defender for the Sixth Judicial District, said his office received the records on Beckman's misconduct in August 2018.

Pertler ran for re-election in November 2018 but was defeated by Lauri Ketola. He left office after the election. By then, his staff had begun a review of cases where Beckman was involved. Ketola continued this review after she took office in January 2019. Ultimately, nearly 20 cases were dismissed, along with the seven defendants who had convictions vacated. In one of those cases, Clarence Lozoya Jr.↗. was serving a prison sentence for assault. None of the other six had been incarcerated after conviction. 

Lozoya's conviction was vacated on February 8, 2019, and he was released from prison. The other defendants had their convictions vacated on March 4, 2019. On April 14, 2021, Lozoya filed a civil-rights lawsuit in U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota against Beckman, the city of Cloquet and Carlton County, seeking damages for his wrongful conviction.

- Ken Otterbourg

Members of this group

These are the members of this group: David Angell, Curtis Defoe, Allaurah Isham, Peter Johnson, Clarence Lozoya Jr., Wesley King, Roger Peterson.