CHARGES: He Broke Into Capitol, Bathed, Sat Naked in Senate Chair
A man has been charged after he allegedly broke into the Capitol building and was found naked, seated in the Minnesota Senate President’s chair late Friday night.
Around 11:15 p.m. on July 25, State Capitol security officers contacted the Minnesota State Patrol about a man they located naked inside the Capitol’s Senate chamber.
The man, later identified as 36-year-old Dominic Terell Peace, was reportedly sitting in the presiding officer’s seat holding an envelope he claimed contained money. Peace told responding officers that the Capitol was his house, that he was the governor, and that his clothes were upstairs. Officers noted he appeared to be in an altered state of mind and had made additional comments about living at the Capitol his entire life.
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After a brief interaction, Peace was escorted outside where medics took him to a hospital. A subsequent search found his clothing in a women’s restroom inside the Capitol, where it appeared Peace had attempted to bathe, leaving standing water on the floor.
Troopers later reviewed Capitol surveillance footage, which showed Peace entering the public building just before 2:00 p.m. earlier that day. About 30 minutes later, he was seen carrying a wooden wedge, which authorities say he used to prop open a mechanical door to gain access later that night after the building had closed. Around 9:47 p.m., Peace returned, entered through that door and went into the women’s restroom for roughly 40 minutes before emerging nude and walking to the second floor.
Inside the Senate chamber, officers found drawers opened and the area around Peace's location disturbed, suggesting he had searched through desks. During a post-Miranda interview, Peace claimed he had woken up in “his daddy’s chair,” saying his father was Jesus and his mother was Mary. He told investigators that a secret organization meets below the Capitol to make global decisions, but no one had been there since 2000 when he "left for Italy."
Peace denied ownership of the clothing found in the restroom and alleged the Capitol was legally his, stating his name was written everywhere inside. He added that the envelope had originally contained $10,000, but now only held $10, which he believed was stolen by hospital staff. He also stated he later spent the money at a gas station.
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Peace was charged in Ramsey County District Court with third-degree burglary. He is currently in custody on a hold from the Wisconsin Department of Corrections and is scheduled to make his first court appearance on July 30.
Peace is also facing charges in two additional open cases in Ramsey County. On July 22, just three days before the Capitol incident, he was cited for shoplifting $151.93 in merchandise from the Midway Target store after previously being trespassed from the property on July 11. He is scheduled to appear in court for that case on Aug. 13.
In a separate case stemming from late May, Peace is accused of stealing a 2011 Nissan Titan in Minneapolis and being found the next day asleep in the vehicle on a Saint Paul street with the keys still in the ignition. He allegedly told police he purchased the vehicle for $2,500 but had no documentation and claimed the registration was under his social security number. The vehicle had been reported stolen just two days prior, making the claim impossible according to the complaint. That case is also set for a hearing on Aug. 13, and Peace remains subject to a pending Rule 20 mental competency evaluation.
On Monday, the Department of Public Safety said it planned to hire an outside, third-party firm to conduct a security assessment of the Capitol complex.
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