TRUTH TEST: TV ad attacking Teirab gets an ‘F’

Republican Joe Teirab is making his experience as a prosecutor the centerpiece of his campaign in Minnesota’s 2^i.e Congressional district.

Democratic incumbent Angie Craig’s campaign disputes that in a new ad that attacks Teirab as soft on crime, especially drug offenders and child molesters.

“We are dealing with a fentanyl epidemic,” said a man identified as “Tom” from Hastings, Minnesota. “I know because I lost my son to it. So it hurts me when a weak prosecutor like Joe Teirab lets a convicted criminal go easily. And he’s back on the streets sharing his poison… and then that same person gets arrested again for dealing fentanyl.”

It is true that the man’s son died after buying a counterfeit pill online and died of fentanyl poisoning in 2020.

The ad gives the impression that Teirab was the prosecutor in the case involving the man who sold the counterfeit drug that led to his son’s death. That’s not true.

What is true is that a man in another case involving Teirab, who is quoted in the advertisement in a news story on the website “Southern Minnesota News,” accepted a plea deal to testify against one of the leaders of a drug gang.

According to Teirab, the drug gang leader was sentenced to 21 years in prison, largely based on the other man’s testimony.

Teirab served as an assistant U.S. attorney in Minnesota from 2019 to 2023. He previously served as an assistant public defender in Nicollet County from 2017 to 2019. During that time, the Craig campaign said Teirab was involved in reaching plea deals with people accused of child abuse. abuse. The advertisement does not mention any examples. The Craig campaign did email some samples, but asked us not to publish them.

Because this ad contains so much misleading, out-of-context and missing information, it gets an “F” on the 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS “Truth Test.”

View the truth test archives HERE.

How KSTP rates political ads in the truth test

• An “A” requires near-complete accuracy with little exaggeration and little or no need for further context.
• A “B” usually requires accurate information, but is frowned upon for minor exaggerations or misleading information.
• A “C” can be the result of incorrect information or exaggerated information that misleads the viewer or provides no context.
• Duck” is the result of at least half of the information being false or misleading, creating a false impression.
• An “F” is the result of more than half of the information being outright false, misleading or out of context.