ND State Rep Liz Conmy, Pilot Joe Cass, ID’d As Victims In Saturday Brooklyn Park Plane Crash

BROOKLYN PARK, MN. (THECOUNT) — North Dakota State Representative Liz Conmy of Fargo and her friend Joe Cass, the pilot of the aircraft, were killed Saturday when their small plane crashed into a park near Crystal Airport in Brooklyn Park shortly after takeoff, authorities confirmed. The plane caught fire after going down in the park northwest of the airport, and there were no survivors. Both the National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Aviation Administration are investigating.

According to Brooklyn Park Police, the department received the crash report at 11:51 a.m. Metropolitan Airports Commission spokesperson Jeff Lea confirmed the aircraft — a Beechcraft BE33 Bonanza single-engine plane — was heading north on the runway when it was unable to become airborne and crashed into the small park immediately northwest of the airfield. Brooklyn Park Fire crews arrived within minutes and extinguished the fire. The FAA confirmed two people were aboard; neither survived. Crystal Airport was closed for approximately two hours following the crash and resumed normal operations at 2 p.m.

The NTSB, which will lead the investigation, identified the plane as a Beech F33A and said investigators were expected to arrive at the scene Monday evening or early Tuesday morning. No cause of the crash had been established as of Saturday evening. The Hennepin County Medical Examiner’s Office is handling the formal identification of both victims.

Conmy was a Democratic member of the North Dakota House of Representatives, representing District 11 in south Fargo. She was seeking her second term in the legislature at the time of her death. According to North Dakota Gov. Kelly Armstrong, Conmy “served her state and community with care and compassion” through her work in the legislature, on the state’s Human Trafficking Commission, and on issues including public education, the environment, immigration, and transparency. Armstrong directed U.S. and North Dakota flags flown at half-staff on the day of Conmy’s interment.

Conmy was raised on a farm near Langdon in Cavalier County in northeastern North Dakota, and was said to still operate the Quam family farm. She had ties to the University of St. Thomas and Minnesota State University. North Dakota Democratic Minority Leader Zac Ista called Conmy “one of our finest legislators,” adding that “she lived life to its fullest, never shying from adventure or speaking her mind.” State Sen. Tim Mathern, who described Conmy as his running mate and friend, said she had been flying with Cass for about a year and a half. “She had a zest for life and a strong work ethic, probably an offshoot of being the only child of farmers near Langdon,” Mathern said.

The North Dakota Democratic-NPL Party issued a statement Saturday evening: “We are completely heartbroken and gutted by the loss of Representative Liz Conmy. Her death is a profound loss for our state.” North Dakota DNC Committeeman Jamie Selzler described Conmy as one of the state’s finest legislators, saying she “had the rare ability to equally understand and represent both the most rural and urban parts of our state.” House Minority Leader Josh Boschee said she was “known for her ability to work with just about anyone” and had “a contagious energy that our caucus depended on during the long days during the legislative session.”

Brooklyn Park is a suburb in Hennepin County in the northwest portion of the Minneapolis–Saint Paul metropolitan area, approximately 12 miles north of downtown Minneapolis. The city had a population of approximately 86,000 as of the 2020 census, making it the sixth-largest city in Minnesota. Crystal Airport is a general aviation reliever airport located just south of Brooklyn Park in the neighboring city of Crystal, operated by the Metropolitan Airports Commission. It serves private and charter aircraft and is one of several general aviation facilities in the Twin Cities metro.

Fargo, where Conmy represented District 11, is the largest city in North Dakota with a population of approximately 125,000 and serves as the state’s primary commercial hub. It sits on the Red River of the North along the Minnesota border at the junction of Interstate 29 and Interstate 94, roughly 240 miles northwest of Minneapolis.

The approximate location of the crash site near Crystal Airport in Brooklyn Park can be viewed on Google Maps (approximate).

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