A disgraced Minnesota state lawmaker caught crawling around her stepmother’s bedroom floor while dressed all in black showed little emotion as she escaped a lengthy prison sentence for the brazen burglary.
Democrat Nicole Mitchell — who resigned as a state senator over the scandal — had faced up to 20 years in prison after being convicted of first-degree burglary.
However, the former commander in the Air National Guard was sentenced on Tuesday to just 180 days of work release, meaning she can leave prison each day to work — far less than what prosecutors sought, according to KSTP.
“I messed everything up,” Mitchell told the court, remaining emotionless throughout most of her sentencing hearing.
“I deserve to be here today. … I did something wrong and I will work on being a better person.”
Mitchell, who was also a former TV meteorologist, was caught sneaking around her stepmother’s home in Detroit Lakes — 220 miles northwest of the Twin Cities — in April 2024.
Wild video showed her dressed all in black — including a cap — as she crawled around the bedroom floor.
She initially claimed she was in the house to check on the stepmom, Carol Mitchell — and collect her late father’s ashes. However, she later admitted during the trial that she shouldn’t have been there at all.
“Once I was there and she woke up and bumped into me and felt me and started to yell, I thought she knew it was me. I was a coward and I ran,” Mitchell had said. “I deserve whatever she would’ve yelled at me. Whatever she had to say to me at that point would’ve been 100 percent justified.
Mitchell was convicted in July on first-degree burglary and possession of burglary tools charges. The Democrat resigned her seat on July 25, 2025, a week after her conviction.
Mitchell will also serve five years of supervised probation and will serve a 21-month prison sentence if she violates her probation, according to the outlet.
Mitchell was elected in 2022 to serve a four-year term representing the state’s 47th District that encompasses the Twin Cities suburbs of Woodbury and Maplewood.
Her seat remains vacant with a special election scheduled for Nov. 4.
