On September 19, 2025, Detective Lang of the Wright County Sheriff's Office spoke with an adult female, hereinafter Complainant, in response to a criminal sexual assault complaint regarding Shawn Jule Palm [DOB REDACTED], hereinafter Defendant. Complainant disclosed the following: Complainant and Defendant had worked together at a gas station for a period of time and had been friends; Approximately two years ago Defendant came to Complainant's apartment in Wright County, Minnesota; Complainant's then-boyfriend, hereinafter Boyfriend, was also at the apartment and all three were drinking alcohol; Defendant brought a 1.75 liter bottle of whiskey; At one point Boyfriend went to bed in a bedroom while Complainant and Defendant continued to hang out; Complainant drank a lot more than Defendant, at Defendant's behest; Defendant started kissing Complainant; Complainant pulled away from Defendant; Defendant pinned Complainant down on the couch in the living room and started to pull off Complainant's pants; Complainant told Defendant to stop; Defendant did not stop; Defendant pulled Complainant's pants off of Complainant; Defendant put his penis in Complainant's vagina and engaged in intercourse upon Complainant for five to seven minutes, without Complainant's consent; Defendant did not use a condom and ejaculated in Complainant; After Defendant ejaculated he got up and left Complainant's apartment; Complainant did not tell Boyfriend about the sexual assault but did disclose the sexual assault to a female friend, hereinafter Friend.
Detective Lang spoke with Complainant's Friend, who reported the following: Complainant disclosed Defendant's sexual assault shortly after it was committed; Complainant said Defendant Defendant had come to Complainant's apartment in Wright County and it was just the two of them at one point; Defendant had a bottle of alcohol and kept giving it to Complainant to drink more; Complainant had blacked out but remembered bits and pieces of Defendant sexually assaulting Complainant. Detective Lang also spoke with Boyfriend.
Boyfriend recalled a time when Defendant came over and Boyfriend fell asleep while Defendant was still at Complainant's apartment. Complainant told Boyfriend that Defendant sexually assaulted Complainant. In a follow-up call with Complainant, Complainant told Detective Lang she did not recall disclosing the sexual assault to Boyfriend. On September 23, 2025, Detective Lang, accompanied by Detective Rudolph, spoke with Defendant. Defendant initially said he did not know Complainant. When Detective Lang noted the two had worked together, Defendant said he remembered Complainant.
Defendant claimed Complainant and Defendant would not have hung out together outside of work. Detective Lang asked if they had hung out at Complainant's apartment. Defendant then agreed he had spent time with Complainant outside of work and said Complainant was always the one that invited Defendant to drink together. Defendant denied forcing himself on Complainant or having sex with Complainant and asserted that Complainant's accusation was untruthful. Defendant said he never sexually assaulted anyone but there could have been times when things could have been misconstrued by others.
