MINOT — Crime in North Dakota has made a lot of headlines in 2025.

The year began with a bruising debate at the legislative session over Attorney General Drew Wrigley's demand for tougher sentencing requirements, which included a full-scale attack on the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation over recidivism rates. DOCR officials, for their part, pointed out that our state's prisons and jails are already chock full. Lawmakers ultimately rejected Wrigley's bid, but promised to study the crime issue during the interim.

Wrigley, too, promised a renewed debate in the 2027 session, armed with fresh data.

Since then, over the summer and into fall, there have been lengthy debates in Fargo and other communities around the state about everything from shootings to safety threats fro

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