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Jun 5, 2007 7:21 pm US/Central
Woman Arrested In Porter's Death Released
St. Paul (WCCO) ―
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Howard Porter, who lived in St. Paul, was found unconscious and severely beaten in a North Minneapolis alley on May 19. He died May 26 at a local hospital. (File)
St. Paul Police Department
No charges were filed Tuesday against a 33-year-old St. Paul woman arrested in the beating death of Ramsey County probation officer Howard Porter, and she was released from jail.
The woman had been in custody since Sunday night on suspicion of homicide.
Prosecutors had until noon Tuesday to file charges or release the woman. St. Paul police said there was not enough evidence to charge her now in the case, but the investigation was continuing.
"That doesn't mean she's cleared or anything. It just means there's not enough right now to charge her," said Janet Hafner, a spokeswoman for the Ramsey County attorney's office.
The woman was on probation in the past after being convicted of possession of crack cocaine, but Porter was not one of her probation officers, said Chris Crutchfield, spokesman for Ramsey County Community Corrections.
Police spokesman Tom Walsh said the woman remains a suspect, though it was unclear whether she was the one who beat Porter. Walsh said the woman is about 5-foot-2 and 135 pounds, while Porter was 6-8 and about 260 pounds.
Police also said they arrested a second suspect, a man, who was later released pending further investigation.
Porter, who lived in St. Paul, was found unconscious and severely beaten in a North Minneapolis alley on May 19. He died May 26 at a local hospital.
Before Porter was a probation officer, he played college and professional basketball. He played for Villanova from 1968 to 1971and in the NBA for Chicago, Detroit and New York.
Villanova and three NBA groups had offered a $20,000 reward for information about Porter's death.
Crutchfield said the Corrections Department is cautiously optimistic about the developments in the case.
(© 2007 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
