A judge sentenced a Lino Lakes man to probation and stripped him of his right to vote for five years for attacking a couple holding a sign critical of former President Donald Trump on a White Bear Lake street corner.
Mark A. Ulsaker, 51, of Lino Lakes, pleaded guilty in Ramsey County District Court to two felony counts of threats of violence in connection with the attack on Nov. 8, when he swung a golf club at the older man and woman and punched the man in the head.
Judge Edward Sheu sentenced Ulsaker to 100 hours of community service and gave him credit for the four days he was jailed after the incident. The judge dismissed charges of assault with a dangerous weapon and assault on a police officer while resisting arrest.
The sentence also includes five years of probation, during which Ulsaker will be unable to vote in any elections, including for president in 2024. He also cannot possess firearms during that time.
The husband and wife, ages 80 and 78, were among a group standing on a corner at Hwy. 96 and Centerville Road, five days after voters chose Democrat Joe Biden over Trump.
The woman said she and her husband were waving the homemade political sign with an anti-Trump message when Ulsaker pulled up next to them in his pickup truck and shouted a vulgarity at them. Ulsaker then walked up from behind and started swinging a golf club at their heads and punched the man in the head, according to the criminal complaint.
Under questioning by police, Ulsaker said he was a "Trump supporter" who was angry about the couple's sign, the complaint said.
Paul Walsh • 612-673-4482
