Former Minnesota state Sen. Justin Eichorn pleads guilty to federal charge after sex sting arrest

Sarah Nelson, The Minnesota Star Tribune on May 14, 2026

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ST. PAUL, Minn. — Former Minnesota state Sen. Justin Eichorn pleaded guilty Thursday to a lower federal charge in connection to his arrest during an undercover sex sting operation by Bloomington police last year.

Eichorn, 42, admitted in U.S. District Court in St. Paul to attempting to possess child pornography while messaging who he thought was a 17-year-old girl online but instead was an undercover police officer. The Grand Rapids Republican resigned from his seat soon after he was initially charged with attempted coercion and enticement of a minor. He signaled his intent to change his plea from not guilty earlier this week.

Federal prosecutors and the defense agreed to a sentencing range of 15 to 21 months in prison, though federal judges have much more discretion when imposing punishment. The lesser child pornography charge carries a sentence of up to 10 years in prison, compared to Eichorn’s previous charge that carried a mandatory minimum of 10 years. After his federal charges were brought, Eichorn’s state case was dismissed.

In the St. Paul courtroom, Eichorn admitted to details of the offenses in his plea agreement that was read in court by Assistant U.S. Attorney Torrie Schneider. Eichorn confirmed that he responded to the undercover agent’s online sex ad on March 11, 2025, and asked for her availability, rates and photos over the next several days. On March 17, Eichorn messaged the agent again and asked her age, to which she responded she was 17. Eichorn confirmed he looked up the age of consent and again asked the undercover agent for photos of herself.

According to the plea, Eichorn told the agent that she appeared to be in her 20s. The agent again said she was 17 and if he wasn’t interested, “Bye.” Eichorn said he was still interested and drove to Bloomington, where he was arrested.

After the plea was read, Tostrud asked Eichorn how he pleads.

“Guilty, your honor,” Eichorn said.

Charles Hawkins, Eichorn’s attorney, asked the judge to allow his client to remain out of custody ahead of his sentencing, which has not yet been scheduled. Hawkins argued that Eichorn’s federal prosecution is uncommon, repeating his previous arguments that Eichorn was selectively targeted by the U.S. attorney’s office because of his standing as a state senator. He restated a comment from then-acting U.S. Attorney Lisa Kirkpatrick, who said in a news release that the office “has no tolerance for public officials who violate federal law — particularly those laws meant to protect children.”

“This case is one of the most uncommon, out of the ordinary and rare prosecutions out of the district of Minnesota,” Hawkins argued.

Federal prosecutors objected to the request, saying the claims are a “regurgitation” of previous arguments of vindictive prosecution the defense made during several attempts to have Eichorn’s case dismissed.

U.S. District Judge Eric Tostrud ultimately denied Eichorn’s request to remain out of custody. Eichorn was handcuffed and remanded to the U.S. Marshals Service after court adjourned.

Eichorn was elected in 2016 to the Minnesota Senate and represented parts of Beltrami, Cass, Crow Wing, Hubbard and Itasca counties. He was replaced by Republican Keri Heintzeman in April 2025 after a special election was held for the north-central Minnesota seat.

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