Myon Burrell convicted of weapons and drug offenses

Myon Demarlo Burrell, whose murder sentence was commuted in 2020, was found guilty of weapons and drug offenses on Friday.

According to court documents, the court found him guilty of fifth-degree illegal possession of a weapon and possession of a controlled substance.

The case was handled by the Dakota County Attorney's Office because Burrell was a paid campaign employee of Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty.

According to a criminal complaint, a Robbinsdale police officer pulled Burrell over for speeding. When the officer stopped the SUV and Burrell rolled down the driver's side window, “smoke appeared to be pouring out,” the complaint continues.

After smelling marijuana and noticing signs of intoxication during a breathalyzer test, the officer told Burrell he was going to search for marijuana in the SUV. The complaint states that Burrell said the officer did not have permission to do so and walked away when the officer said he had to sit in the back of the patrol car. Burrell was handcuffed and taken to the patrol car.

Inside the vehicle, the officer found a Glock 17 9mm pistol and marijuana residue, according to court documents, as well as a backpack containing two baggies of suspected marijuana, 21 capsules with a crystal-like powder inside and 16 suspected ecstasy pills. Later tests revealed that one of the 21 capsules contained meth and one of the 16 pills tested positive for MDMA.

According to court documents, Burrell's DNA was found on the firearm. His DNA was also found on the drug bags.

Because of his previous conviction for murder, Burrell is not allowed to own a gun.

That conviction stems from the 2002 murder of 11-year-old Tyesha Edwards. He was sentenced to life in prison as a teenager but was released after 18 years when the state Board of Pardons and Parole reduced his sentence.

Burrell is scheduled to appear in court again on September 23.

The Associated Press contributed to this article.