Hubbard County is filling the vacancy for County Attorney Jonathan Frieden, who recently died of cancer.
Hubbard County to fill vacancy following county attorney’s death
Jonathan Frieden oversaw the prosecutors office in Park Rapids for seven years.
The Minnesota Star Tribune
November 14, 2024 at 12:10PM
County Administrator Jeffrey Cadwell said in an email to the Minnesota Star Tribune that John Olson will be acting county attorney and oversee the office until the vacancy is filled by appointment.
Frieden, 43, died Nov. 9. He was diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer 18 months ago. It was a shock to the community, his family and the small prosecutors office in Park Rapids that he led for seven years.
His term expires in 2026. The Hubbard County Board will open the application process and appoint a replacement in the coming months, but it will be “very big shoes to fill,“ Ninth District Judge Tamara Yon previously told the Star Tribune.
Frieden was appointed as county attorney in 2017 to fill a vacancy due to retirement. At the time, he was 36 years old. He ran unopposed twice, in 2018 and 2022. He previously served as assistant county attorney in the ninth judicial district for nearly a decade.
The legal community remembered Frieden as a highly respected, personable attorney. “He was just a fantastic young man. What a tragedy to lose him,” Yon said.
He is survived by his wife, Sarah Frieden, three young daughters and six siblings, including an identical twin.
A celebration of life was set for Thursday in Park Rapids.
The Minnesota National Guard has transformed what was a weekend deluge of bow hunters into a daily trickle.
