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isanticountynews.com ISANTI COUNTY, MINNESOTA
A local youth baseball coach and teen motivational speaker is being held in lieu of $1 million bail in connection with a shooting at a rural Isanti County residence that required the services of the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, the State Patrol Tactical Team and the Isanti County Special Response Team.
 Russell J. Simon Russell James Simon Jr., 45, has been charged with two counts of attempted premeditated murder in the first degree, in addition to a list of other charges including two counts of attempted murder without premeditation in the second degree.
A call of “shots fired” came into Isanti County Dispatch at 1:47 a.m. Thursday, May 15 and the first victim was found walking down Hwy. 47, disoriented and bleeding from a facial cut. The man stated that Simon had fired several shots at him and at least two more at a second victim who was still at the residence.
He didn’t believe he had been hit by the gunfire, he said, but that Simon had struck him in the face with a statue.
A hostage negotiator attempted to make telephone contact with Simon but was unable to do so. A safe perimeter was set up around the building and a short time later the entry teams moved into the residence and found Simon in bed, a .380 automatic handgun lying next to him.
The second victim, whose arm had been grazed by a bullet, and a child who was not injured, were transported to the Isanti County Sheriff’s Department.
The charges
Simon appeared before Judge P. Hunter Anderson on Friday, May 16 where he was formally charged with two counts of attempted premeditated murder in the 1st degree, two counts of attempted murder without premeditation in the 2nd degree, two counts of criminal sexual conduct in the first degree, two counts of assault with a dangerous weapon in the second degree and one count of felony possession of a firearm by a person convicted of a crime of violence.
The weapons charge arises out of two felony assault convictions in Hennepin County in 1987 for which he served time in prison. He was also convicted of misdemeanor domestic assault in Hennepin County in 2004.
Originally from Roseville, Simon moved to Isanti County about six months ago and had been a head coach for the Cambridge-Isanti Competitive Baseball Association.
Bail was set at $1 million without conditions or $600,000 with conditions and his next court appearance for May 22. Although a public defender was appointed at his request, Simon has since retained Twin Cities attorney Barry V. Voss of Voss and Hickman, P.A. to represent him.
Concerned about any further threats toward the victims, Deputy County Attorney Amy Reed-Hall asked that Simon be required to wear a Global Positioning (GPS) monitor if he is released on bail.
When asked by Judge Anderson if he had any questions, Simon responded, “It’s all crazy and not what it seems.” He said the guns at the residence were not his but owned by one of the victims and that his felony convictions were from 15 years ago.
“If I don’t get out (make bail),” he said, “it will just go to trial and then the truth will come out.”
Simon’s background
According to Simon’s website (www.russellsimon.com), he has spoken to over 250,000 teens and parents throughout the United States on issues such as “drugs, violence, abstinence, nicotine and peer pressure.”
He is also author of a book titled, “Inside the Walls: a Book About Drugs, Prison, Gangs and Recovery,” published in 1995
Background checks in place for baseball association
The Cambridge-Isanti Competitive Baseball Association does have a background check system, albeit the checks were yet to be made on this year’s group of coaches.
Russell J. Simon Jr. (see story above) volunteered to coach a CICB 10-Under Rec League team whose season recently started. According to CICB President Bill Durant, the association is still filling in coaching positions and the necessary individual information for checks, with plans to run the complete batch of names when compiled.
Durant added that coach background checks have not been mandatory for the CICB, but it is a recommended process the association began last year for all coaches.
CNN MINNEAPOLIS A convicted felon who became a motivational speaker -- and used his life experiences to warn teens about the dangers of drugs and crime -- is accused of going on a bender, threatening to kill his girlfriend and her son, and smashing a former prison buddy in the face with a statue of John Wayne. Authorities said Russell Simon Jr. was jailed on attempted murder charges after the events following his relapse into drugs and alcohol. According to a criminal complaint, a night of drinking with the prison buddy on May 15 led to Simon stripping off his clothes, fighting with the friend and firing shots at him and Simon's girlfriend. At one point Simon hit the man in the face with the John Wayne statue, according to the complaint. The complaint says Simon forced his girlfriend to perform oral sex on him while he had his gun nearby and threatened to kill her and her 9-year-old son. At least six shots were fired, one grazing the woman's arm, the complaint said. Isanti County Attorney Jeff Edblad said last week that tests show Simon had cocaine, THC and methamphetamine in his system. "We're very fortunate that we're not dealing with a multiple homicide case," Edblad said. The 45-year-old Simon, who enlisted a frank, tough-guy approach in his speeches to students around the country, is in custody on $1 million bail. He's charged with nine counts, including attempted murder, criminal sexual conduct and assault with a dangerous weapon. He was previously in prison for assault. From jail, Simon referred questions to his attorney, Barry Voss, who didn't return messages from The Associated Press. Simon's Web site says he's "a dynamic speaker who talks to over 250,000 teens and parents throughout the U.S. each year on being set free from cycles of drug/alcohol abuse, addiction, and violence." Some counselors and school administrators agreed, calling Simon a charismatic figure who connected with audiences by talking about how alcohol affected his home life, the poor decisions he made, and the dangers of prison. His program showed how he beat his demons to succeed. Edblad said that because a child was in the house during the ordeal, prosecutors will ask for stiffer penalties against Simon if he's convicted. Bail was kept at $1 million because Simon made threatening phone calls from the jail to his former wife, authorities said. Police are also investigating possible fraud or identity theft because Simon had four credit cards belonging to someone else. "It sounds like Russell ended up going back into drugs, and it leads you down that kind of path where you do things that you normally wouldn't do. He's going to end up right back where he started," said Vicki Langemo, a prevention counselor at a suburban Twin Cities high school who thought highly of Simon after hearing him speak years ago. While saying she doesn't know if the allegations are true, Langemo added: "I'm just very sad to hear that those are the choices he made."
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