Gordon Backlund
Gordon Backclund | |
|---|---|
| Member of the Minnesota House of Representatives | |
| In office 1985–1986 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | November 11, 1940 Saint Paul, Minnesota, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Relations | Kate Knuth (niece) |
| Education | University of Minnesota (BS) University of Iowa (MPA) |
Gordon Backlund (born November 11, 1940) is an American politician and former engineer who served as a member of the Minnesota House of Representatives from 1985 to 1986.
Early life and education
[edit]Backlund was born in Saint Paul, Minnesota. He graduated from Two Harbors High School in Two Harbors, Minnesota. Backlund received a Bachelor of Science degree in electrical engineering from the University of Minnesota and his Master of Public Administration from the University of Iowa.
Career
[edit]Backlund worked for Collins Radio Company in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. He served in the Minnesota House of Representatives in 1985 and 1986 and was a Republican. In 1989, Backlund served on the Fridley School Board.[1]
Personal life
[edit]Backlund lived in Fridley, Minnesota. Backlund and his wife, Linda, had two children.[2] His son, Mark, died in January 2008, at age 29, after a traffic accident.[3] Mark was tasered by Minnesota State Patrol troopers after being "uncooperative and combative." State troopers were cleared of any wrongdoing in the incident.[4]
His brother-in-law, Daniel Knuth, and his niece, Kate Knuth, also served in the Minnesota Legislature.[5][6]
Notes
[edit]- ^ Spencer, Adam - 3 school board incumbents face challenger in Sturdevant St. Paul Pioneer Press, October 21, 2009
- ^ Mark Backlund Obituary. St. Paul Pioneer Press, January 18, 2008.
- ^ John Brewer - Taser victim’s family is left to wonder St. Paul Pioneer Press, January 17, 2008
- ^ Pat Pheifer - Troopers cleared in Tasered Fridley man's death Minneapolis Star Tribune, May 8, 2008 quote:"Ramsey County Attorney Susan Gaertner said the State Patrol acted appropriately to subdue Mark Backlund in January and a " Taser was a nonfactor"; an autopsy concluded that he died of drug abuse."
- ^ Minnesota Legislators Past & Present-Gordon Backlund
- ^ Fridley Public Schools District Bulletin, Fridley, Minnesota, December 2013, vol. 48, issue 1, pg.6, School board member named to Fridley Hall of Fame
 | This article about a Minnesota politician is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
- 1940 births
- Living people
- People from Fridley, Minnesota
- Politicians from Saint Paul, Minnesota
- American electrical engineers
- University of Iowa alumni
- University of Minnesota College of Science and Engineering alumni
- School board members in Minnesota
- Republican Party members of the Minnesota House of Representatives
- 20th-century members of the Minnesota Legislature
- Minnesota politician stubs