Frequently Asked Questions
What is MCRO?
Minnesota Court Records Online (MCRO) provides online access to many public Minnesota state district court records and documents.
Justice-Denied uses MCRO to download public documents related to various court cases in Minnesota.
How does Justice-Denied handle MCRO documents responsibly?
When referencing MCRO materials, we may:
* Host a copy in our PDF viewer when permitted, without modification, other than highlighting or redactions, which are noted
* Cite the case number, court, filing date, or document title so readers can locate the document themselves via MCRO
* Avoid publishing documents that are sealed, restricted, or otherwise non-public
This approach balances public access, legal compliance, and accurate citation, while ensuring readers can still trace documents back to their official source.
Why do you provide both PDF viewer links and direct links to court documents?
We often provide two ways to access court documents:
* PDF Viewer Links (on Justice-Denied):
These links open a locally hosted copy of the document in our PDF viewer. This ensures long-term availability, consistent formatting, accessibility across devices, and protection against broken or changed external links. It also allows readers to review documents in context, alongside related analysis. In some cases, we include highlighting of important sections of the document.
* Direct Links to Official Court Sources:
When available, we also provide direct links to the official court-hosted document so readers can independently verify the source and compare it to the version we reference.
Providing both options promotes transparency, verification, and reliability—core principles of Justice-Denied.
Why don’t you provide direct links to documents from MCRO?
Documents available through Minnesota Court Records Online (MCRO) cannot be directly linked for several reasons:
* No public permalinks: MCRO does not provide stable, shareable URLs for individual documents.
* Session-based access: Documents are generated within user-specific login sessions and expire.
* Terms and access controls: Direct linking, deep-linking, or automated access is restricted.
Because of these limitations, it is not technically or legally possible to provide a public direct link to an MCRO document.
Is the judicial system in Otter Tail County fair and impartial?
Craig: No, based solely on my own experience with Judge Miller.
I don't have any experience with any of the other judges, so I can't say one way or the other.
Is the judicial system in Minnesota fair and impartial?
Craig: No, based solely on my own experience with the Otter Tail County District Court and the Minnesota Court of Appeals.
My sense, from reading many of their opinions, is that the Minnesota Supreme Court is much more thorough and fair. However, it is difficult to get a case to the Supreme Court for review.
Is there a way to overcome judicial bias?
Craig: No, not that I have found. Because judges have so much power and can control what evidence is discovered, how that evidence is viewed, how laws are interpreted, and ultimately, whether a case is allowed to be presented before a jury, there does not appear to be a way to overcome judicial bias. Even oversight bodies don't seem to want to address the topic.
Should litigants and attorneys be concerned about fairness in Otter Tail County?
Craig: Yes, based on my own experience, especially if Judge Miller is the presiding judge in the case. In general, I think it is prudent for all litigants to be vigilant about fairness and impartiality, in every case, regardless of judicial officer or venue.
Do the issues and irregularities noted in the Stevenson case extend to all other cases?
Craig: No, for the most part, they do not. For example, in the vast majority of Judge Miller's summary judgment orders that I have reviewed, Judge Miller appears to have followed the proper legal standard. At this time, for reasons yet unknown, our case appears to be a significant aberration.
What are your goals?
Craig: Truth, justice, and accountability.
What will you do if you eventually get some measure of justice?
Craig: I will update this site accordingly. While we are not hopeful, given what we have witnessed, it is still possible that our case is reviewed in its entirety by a truly impartial arbiter or that additional evidence is discovered that would overturn previous decisions.
How is Marie's health?
Craig: So far, Marie is doing well physically, despite the significant side effects of her cancer medication. She continues to be closely monitored by her doctors.
The psychological impact has been devastating, and it is unclear whether she will ever totally recover from the trauma she endured over the last five years.
What are Marie's plans for the future?
Craig: She has always enjoyed writing, and she is seriously considering writing a book about her life experiences.
What are Craig's plans for the future?
Craig: I plan to care for Marie as long as I am able, and try to help her recover from the trauma that she has endured over the last five years.
How often do you update the web site?
Craig: Now that the work from our own case is done, it varies greatly, from every few days to every several weeks. When new court rulings appear that directly involve or relate to an aspect of our case, or that I think might interest our readers, I try to post something.
Why did you rely on Artificial Intelligence (AI) for your analysis?
Craig: I wanted a fair and unbiased analysis of every significant event or ruling in our case. I thought the use of AI would offer an objective analysis that, after going through the lawsuit process myself, I wasn't certain I could provide on a consistent basis. I also thought it added credibility to the analysis and conclusions, since the results were based on actual court documents.
Why did you reverse the order of the AI query and answer on many pages?
Craig: I thought it was a fairer way to present the AI analysis without detracting from it or influencing the reader. After reading the page, people can look at the original query to see if it was biased in any way. There are a few pages where this method did not work as well, generally due to extensive background information, so those pages are displayed in a more typical style.