The MN Supreme Court ruled yesterday that the Twins are
"exempt" from federal and state antitrust laws, "possibly
ending an investigation into whether baseball owners
conspired to try to get public money for a new stadium by
threatening to move the team to another state," according to
Whereatt & Souhan of the Minneapolis STAR TRIBUNE. The
court said in a unanimous ruling that the state attorney
"may not force Twins officials and [MLB] Commissioner Bud
Selig to answer questions about actions they may have taken
to try to get public money." The civil action against the
league was initiated more than a year ago by then-AG Hubert
Humphrey III. Even though no suit was ever filed, Humphrey
sent the Twins and the league a set of questions "exploring
whether antitrust laws may have been violated." Humphrey's
successor, AG Mike Hatch, said he was "disappointed" by the
court's decision, and that he is "taking a careful review of
the decision to determine whether to ask the U.S. Supreme
Court to review the case." The state has 10 days to ask the
MN high court to rehear the case and 90 days to appeal to
the U.S. Supreme Court (Minneapolis STAR TRIBUNE, 4/30).
