--- title: Justice-Denied — Home url: https://justice-denied.org/justice-denied-content-first-homepage/ date: 2026-07-25T16:33:45+00:00 modified: 2026-10-03T11:50:25+00:00 lang: en_US --- Judicial accountability · Otter Tail County · Minnesota # When justice fails in public, the public deserves to know. ![Justice-Denied JD monogram](https://justice-denied.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/justice-denied-team-avatar-300x300.webp) Justice-Denied examines whether Minnesota courts deliver the fairness the law promises. We bring the record into public view so readers can understand what happened, evaluate the courts’ reasoning, and assess whether justice was served. [Latest reporting ↓](#latest-reporting)[Start with the evidence ↓](#featured-investigations)[Why this site exists ↓](#why-this-site-exists) ## Latest reporting November 6, 2026 [Revisiting Our Early AI Analyses: The Record, the Law, and Our Experience](https://justice-denied.org/revisiting-our-early-ai-analyses/) November 3, 2026 [Judge Harris’s AI Warning and Judge Miller’s False Quotation](https://justice-denied.org/harris-ai-citations-miller-lawrence/) November 2, 2026 [The Civil Case Funnel: How Judges Narrow the Road to Trial](https://justice-denied.org/civil-case-funnel-how-judges-narrow-a-case/) [All reporting →](https://justice-denied.org/blog/) Featured investigations ## Start with the central evidence. Countywide civil-jury study ### A jury setting rarely became a jury trial. Justice-Denied reviewed eight years of public court records to follow what happened after Otter Tail County civil cases received an MCRO jury-trial setting. 1. 105 Received jury settings 100% 2. 5 Reached jury proceedings 4.8% 3. 4 Produced a verdict 3.8% 4. 3 Decided contested liability 2.9% As of August 31, 2026, 100 of 105 cases had not reached jury proceedings—nearly nineteen out of twenty. **Scope:** Otter Tail County civil cases with at least one MCRO “Jury Trial” setting, May 7, 2018–August 31, 2026. This is not a percentage of every civil case filed and does not determine why each case ended. [See the cases and methodology →](https://justice-denied.org/otter-tail-county-civil-jury-trials/) ### When did an Otter Tail County civil jury last decide liability? As of August 31, 2026 #### Judge Benson Last identified: December 14, 2023 **2** years **8** months **17** days #### Judge Judd None identified · reviewed from March 1, 2021 **5** years **5** months **30** days #### Judge Miller None identified · reviewed from May 7, 2018 **8** years **3** months **24** days Contested liability only; reviewed jury settings. Judd/Miller intervals run from appointment. [Details & 105 cases →](https://justice-denied.org/otter-tail-county-civil-jury-trials/#jd-article-jury-interval) [![Judicial bias scores from 20 analyses covering 19 distinct court orders from 2021 through August 2026; negative scores favor defendants and positive scores favor plaintiffs](https://justice-denied.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/judicial-bias-over-time-20-orders-2021-2026-v2.webp)](/bias-analysis-of-judge-millers-orders/) *20 AI-assisted analyses covering 19 distinct orders issued by Judge Kevin M. Miller, 2021–2026. Negative scores indicate bias favoring defendants; positive scores indicate bias favoring plaintiffs.* [View chart full size ↗](https://justice-denied.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/judicial-bias-over-time-20-orders-2021-2026-v2.webp) Order-by-order analysis ### What the district court orders reveal Review the AI-assisted analysis of key rulings alongside the hearing transcripts and reasoning on which each ruling depended. For broader coverage, see the [Judge Kevin M. Miller public-record profile](https://justice-denied.org/judge-kevin-m-miller/). [Open the full bias analysis →](https://justice-denied.org/bias-analysis-of-judge-millers-orders/) [![Independent judicial investigations review of 29 Minnesota appellate cases showing 28 addressed the issue on the merits and one deemed it forfeited](https://justice-denied.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/minnesota-independent-judicial-investigations-29-cases-600w.webp)](/independent-judicial-investigation-on-appeal/) *In Justice-Denied’s review of 29 Minnesota appellate cases, 28 addressed independent judicial investigation on the merits. In *Stevenson*, the issue was deemed forfeited.* Appellate comparison ### The exception that demands an explanation Compare the treatment of independent judicial investigation in this appeal with the structural-error principles applied across Minnesota cases. [Review the appellate analysis →](https://justice-denied.org/independent-judicial-investigation-on-appeal/) Why this site exists ## A personal case. A public question. ![Craig and Marie Stevenson holding a framed wedding photograph](https://justice-denied.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Craig-and-Marie-Stevenson-Small.webp) *Craig and Marie Stevenson Married for over 36 years* *This began with our family.* We are Craig and Marie Stevenson of Fergus Falls, and what happened in one Otter Tail County courtroom raised questions that reach far beyond one case. Justice-Denied documents what happened, tests the courts’ reasoning against the record, and places the evidence in public view. We provide the source material, context, and analysis readers need to reach their own conclusions. [Explore our stories →](https://justice-denied.org/our-story/) Latest reporting ## Follow the record. [View all reporting →](https://justice-denied.org/blog/) [Revisiting Our Early AI Analyses: The Record, the Law, and Our Experience](https://justice-denied.org/revisiting-our-early-ai-analyses/) The early analyses helped give shape to what we experienced in court. Further research has made some of our legal explanations more precise and… [The Fairness Files](https://justice-denied.org/the-fairness-files/)Nov. 6, 2026NewBy [Craig Stevenson](https://justice-denied.org/author/craig/)[Read analysis →](https://justice-denied.org/revisiting-our-early-ai-analyses/) [Judge Harris’s AI Warning and Judge Miller’s False Quotation](https://justice-denied.org/harris-ai-citations-miller-lawrence/) Judge Harris warns against false AI citations. In Stevenson v. Stevenson, a false attribution to In re Lawrence survived written notice to Judge… [Distorting the Law](https://justice-denied.org/distorting-the-law/)Nov. 3, 2026NewBy [Craig Stevenson](https://justice-denied.org/author/craig/)[Read analysis →](https://justice-denied.org/harris-ai-citations-miller-lawrence/) [The Civil Case Funnel: How Judges Narrow the Road to Trial](https://justice-denied.org/civil-case-funnel-how-judges-narrow-a-case/) A guide to ten procedural decisions that can narrow a Minnesota civil case before trial, with a funnel graphic, documented case examples, and a… [Discovery](https://justice-denied.org/category/discovery/)Nov. 2, 2026NewBy [Craig Stevenson](https://justice-denied.org/author/craig/)[Read analysis →](https://justice-denied.org/civil-case-funnel-how-judges-narrow-a-case/) [When Judge Miller Left Disputed Facts to a Jury](https://justice-denied.org/when-judge-miller-left-disputed-facts-to-a-jury/) The Keefe record compares Miller’s recording decision and treatment of disputed inferences with his rulings in Stevenson. [Summary Judgment](https://justice-denied.org/category/summary-judgment/)Nov. 2, 2026NewBy [Craig Stevenson](https://justice-denied.org/author/craig/)Updated Nov. 6, 2026[Read analysis →](https://justice-denied.org/when-judge-miller-left-disputed-facts-to-a-jury/) [When Summary Judgment Makes Discovery Disappear: R&P and Stevenson](https://justice-denied.org/summary-judgment-and-discovery-rp-stevenson/) R&P’s foreclosure reversal restored claims and discovery questions that summary judgment had ended. Stevenson followed the same path to… [Discovery](https://justice-denied.org/category/discovery/)Oct. 26, 2026NewBy [Craig Stevenson](https://justice-denied.org/author/craig/)[Read analysis →](https://justice-denied.org/summary-judgment-and-discovery-rp-stevenson/) [Same Concern, Different Response: Azure v. Bucholz](https://justice-denied.org/same-concern-different-response-azure-v-bucholz/) Azure v. Bucholz, an Otter Tail County contract case, presents a narrow but revealing question: how did Judge Kevin M. Miller respond when a… [Summary Judgment](https://justice-denied.org/category/summary-judgment/)Oct. 26, 2026NewBy [Craig Stevenson](https://justice-denied.org/author/craig/)[Read analysis →](https://justice-denied.org/same-concern-different-response-azure-v-bucholz/) [Two Cases, One Pattern of Narrowing? Comparing Stevenson and Svendsen](https://justice-denied.org/stevenson-and-svendsen-judge-miller/) Compare Judge Kevin M. Miller’s rulings in Stevenson and Svendsen on discovery limits and summary judgment, with court orders and official… [Discovery](https://justice-denied.org/category/discovery/)Oct. 15, 2026By [Craig Stevenson](https://justice-denied.org/author/craig/)Updated Oct. 26, 2026[Read analysis →](https://justice-denied.org/stevenson-and-svendsen-judge-miller/) [The Wide Road Leads to Dismissal](https://justice-denied.org/the-wide-road-leads-to-dismissal/) Shortly after our lawsuit began, Marie and I felt destined to lose. The court record traces the decisions that narrowed the road to trial. [The Candor Files](https://justice-denied.org/the-candor-files/)Oct. 9, 2026By [Craig Stevenson](https://justice-denied.org/author/craig/)Updated Oct. 29, 2026[Read analysis →](https://justice-denied.org/the-wide-road-leads-to-dismissal/) ## Minnesota judicial accountability investigations and series [Distorting the Law](https://justice-denied.org/distorting-the-law/)[Independent Investigations](https://justice-denied.org/independent-investigations/)[The Candor Files](https://justice-denied.org/the-candor-files/)[The Disciplinary Files](https://justice-denied.org/the-disciplinary-files/)[The Fairness Files](https://justice-denied.org/the-fairness-files/)[The Oversight Files](https://justice-denied.org/the-oversight-files/)[The Privacy Files](https://justice-denied.org/the-privacy-files/) The people behind the record ## Our team [![Craig Stevenson](https://justice-denied.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/cropped-Craig-Stevenson-Profile-Picture-2026_01_11-scaled-1-150x150.jpg)](/staff/craig-stevenson/) [Craig Stevenson](/staff/craig-stevenson/) Research · Reporting · Analysis [About Craig Stevenson →](https://justice-denied.org/staff/craig-stevenson/) [![Marie Stevenson](https://justice-denied.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/cropped-Marie-Stevenson-scaled-1-150x150.jpg)](/staff/marie-stevenson/) [Marie Stevenson](/staff/marie-stevenson/) Writing · Advocacy · Perspective [About Marie Stevenson →](https://justice-denied.org/staff/marie-stevenson/) [![Miranda Stevenson](https://justice-denied.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/cropped-Miranda-Stevenson-Profile-Picture-2026_01_11-scaled-1-150x150.jpg)](/staff/miranda-stevenson/) [Miranda Stevenson](/staff/miranda-stevenson/) Research · Family perspective [About Miranda Stevenson →](https://justice-denied.org/staff/miranda-stevenson/)