Local-Regional News April 14

 The Durand City Council is meeting tonight. Items on the agenda include a public hearing on proposed amendments to the Vacant Building Ordinance, and the council will also vote on the ordinance after the public meeting.  Other items on the agenda include discussion and possible action on an outstanding invoice to the Durand Swim Club for swimming lessons in 2019, and an update on the Tarrant Park Pool.  Tonight's meeting is at 6:30 at Durand City Hall and will be live-streamed on our YouTube Channel at Durand Broadcasting WRDN.

Those interested in purchasing land in the Pesso Creek development in Mondovi to take advantage of the tax abatement program have until July 1st.  At last night's Mondovi City Council meeting, the council approved ending the program on July 1st.    Also at last night's meeting, Mayor Weiss told members of an issue with the storm drain on Riverside Drive that could be causing some flooding.  The Mayor said that the city engineering is looking at the issue to come up with a solution.  

The Pepin and Dunn County Health Departments have put on hold vaccination clinics due to the hold on using the Johnson and Johnson vaccine.    If you received the Johnson and Johnson vaccine from the health department or another provider and are experiencing severe headaches, abdominal pain, leg pain, or shortness of breath within 21 days of vaccination, you are to contact your healthcare provider or seek medical care.

Wisconsin's sixth community-based COVID vaccination clinic opens next week in Barron County.  The site at the UW-Eau Claire Rice Lake campus will begin giving shots Tuesday, April 20th.  The goal is to administer at least 200 doses a day with the ability to give up to 500 shots per day.  Anyone age 16 and older can schedule an appointment on the Wisconsin COVID-19 Vaccine Registry.  Governor Tony Evers say these clinics are aimed to optimize local vaccination efforts by closing the gaps in vaccine access across the state.

Less than a week after the April election a member of the Eau Claire City Council has submitted her resignation.  Mai Xiong wasn’t running for reelection this time.  She is leaving to serve as vice-chair of the Governor’s Equity and Inclusion Council – an appointment she received late last month.  She says she is excited about her new responsibilities but sad that she must resign.  Xiong says the new position gives her the opportunity to serve the community in the most impactful way she can.  Her resignation is effective immediately.

Low-income Wisconsin families at risk of losing food assistance next month will continue to receive it.  The U.S. Department of Agriculture told the Evers administration Tuesday that an agreement will preserve about 70 million dollars a month in federal aid. That means about 400,000 households will continue to receive extra aid in May that they were at risk of losing because of a recent state Supreme Court decision. The agreement was announced shortly after Assembly Speaker Robin Vos offered a plan to restore the program, which was all but certain to fail because it included provisions opposed by Democrats.

Power companies in Wisconsin can start cutting people’s lights and heat starting Thursday.   The Wisconsin Public Service Commission says utility customers who owe money should make payment arrangements as soon as possible to avoid losing service. Wisconsin’s moratorium on gas and electricity disconnection ends Thursday. That’s when Wisconsin power companies will be allowed to turn off the lights and gas to customers who haven’t been paying their bills.

 Governor Tony Evers says the state will award 100-million dollars from the American Rescue Plan to small businesses and organizations working to eliminate disparities.  Fifty million will be used for Wisconsin Tomorrow - Main Street Bounceback grants.  The program will provide ten-thousand-dollar grants to new or existing businesses that move into vacant storefronts and commercial properties.  The other 50-million dollars will go to the Equitable Recovery Program for grants to community partners doing work to promote equity and inclusion.  The governor's office says racial disparities have persisted in COVID health outcomes and economic impacts.

The incoming state school superintendent says she won’t order Wisconsin schools to fully reopen in September.   Jill Underly tells Channel 12 in Milwaukee that individual school districts will have to make their own choices. That’s consistent with the current Department of Public Instruction policy. Almost every school district in Wisconsin has resumed at least some in-person learning this spring.

Assembly Republicans are engaging Governor Tony Evers in a tug-of-war over billions of dollars in federal stimulus funds.  The Assembly passed nearly a dozen bills Tuesday on how to spend the three-point-two-billion dollars.  Evers is expected to veto the bills if they reach his desk.  He’s already vetoed two bills that would have given lawmakers more control of that federal coronavirus stimulus money.  Assembly Speaker Robin Vos says instead of Evers, by himself, deciding how to spend taxpayer dollars, there should be a “robust debate” letting the public see where its dollars are going.  

A Rusk County father is in custody for allegedly shooting his 36-year-old son to death.  Deputies were called to a home in Sheldon shortly before 6:30 p-m Friday where they found the body of Jesse O’Brien. He had a single gunshot wound.  Fifty-nine-year-old Scott O’Brien was still at the location and was arrested.  He is being held on suspicion of homicide by intoxicated use of a firearm.  The Wisconsin State Patrol and the state Crime Lab have been working with the Rusk County Sheriff’s Office on the investigation.  Neighbors say the father and son lived together in that home in a rural area outside Sheldon.

Authorities in La Crosse say they are holding a suspect in an April 4th shooting.  Julius Lloyd was identified as a suspect last week.  When he was seen getting into a vehicle on La Crosse’s north side, a police officer conducted a traffic stop.  One officer was injured when Lloyd began to resist arrest.  Investigators say more than 700-dollars in cash and 22 bags containing a substance “consistent with cocaine” were found on his person.

U-W System president Tommy Thompson and U-W-Madison Chancellor Rebecca Blank say it wouldn’t be a good investment to spend 70-million dollars fixing Van Hise Hall.  A concrete slab fell off the Humanities Building last week.  The two university officials say 165-million dollars should be spent to replace Van Hise Hall and build a new Engineering Building on the Madison campus.  Thompson says it’s not just about spending money.  If approved by lawmakers, the projects would be finished by the end of 2025.  Thompson says the work would be “building for the future.”

 The attorney for convicted killer Steven Avery says a new witness came forward with information Sunday, leading her to file a motion with the state Appeals Court.  Kathleen Zellner claims Avery’s nephew, Bobby Dassey, planted the victim’s car at the Avery Salvage Yard in 2005.  Avery is serving time for the murder of photographer Teresa Halbach.  Zellner says Thomas Sowinski told her he was delivering newspapers when he saw Dassey and another man pushing a dark blue RAV-4 down the road toward the junkyard.  Sowinski says Dassey tried to stop him from leaving.  He says he told the Manitowoc County Sheriff’s Office, but nobody interviewed him.  Dassey was one of the key prosecution witnesses against his uncle.

The State Supreme Court heard oral arguments on Monday in a case about how police are allowed to use cell phone data to catch suspects in crimes. At issue is the murder case against George Burch. Police caught Burch by connecting him to the case with the use of cell phone data from a previous and unrelated case. Attorney Ana Lyn Babcock says police wildly overstepped their bounds and should have deleted that data.   Attorneys for the state argue that Burch signed over a consent form at the time he originally offered up that data, and that gave police full consent to do whatever they wanted with the information on the phone. 

It's Severe Weather Awareness Week, and Andrew Beckett with Wisconsin Emergency Management says it's critical to know where to shelter when storms and tornados approach.   You can learn more about how to prepare your household for severe weather at Ready Wisconsin-dot-WI-dot gov.

Local-Regional News April 13

The Mondovi City Council is meeting tonight.  Items on the agenda include a presentation on proposed improvements to the Farrington Field Pavillion, an update on the Independence Day Celebration and discussion, and possible action on an application for a Community Development Block Grant.  Tonight's meeting begins at 6:30 at the Marten Center.

New charges are filed against a Dunn County man in Eau Claire County Court in a second case of sexual assault in which the man pretended to be an Uber driver and offered to give a woman a ride.  According to authorities, 28yr old Larry Young of Menomonie pulled up to a woman walking back to her residence on the UW-Eau Claire Campus posing as an Uber Driver.  Once the woman got into the vehicle, Young locked the doors and attempted to sexually assault her. Young is free on a $2500 cash bond.  He was arrested in March and charged with a similar crime after picking up a woman outside an Eau Claire Bar.

 

Attorneys for the Chippewa County Department of Human Services and three of its employees have filed a brief in federal court asking that the case against them be dismissed.  The workers were singled out for the death of a six-month-old boy in 2018.  The attorneys say the agency and its employees acted appropriately when a 10-year-old girl was placed in a foster home with Jaxon Hunter.  She assaulted the infant causing his death.  D-H-S attorneys say daycare operator Amber Sweeney was responsible.  She was outside doing yard work when the girl dropped Jaxon on the floor and stomped on his head.  Sweeney told investigators she hadn’t shown any aggression toward the other children.

A man in La Crosse has been charged with child sexual assault for the third time. The charges were filed against Vanin Dell McKinnon last week. Investigators say McKinnon sexually assaulted a girl between 2008 and 2012. They say the victim was four years old when the abuse began. McKinnon is already serving an 11-year sentence after being convicted in 2019 of repeatedly assaulting a young girl. His criminal record also includes a 2009 conviction for having sex with a 16-year-old girl. This latest alleged victim says McKinnon was supposed to be watching her while her mother was at work. She says he told her not to tell anyone what he had done.

 Minnesota House Democrats unveiled a nearly one-billion-dollar bonding bill for state public works projects Sunday. That is double what Governor Tim Walz proposed and on the heels of last year's record-breaking one-point-nine-billion-dollar bonding package. House Speaker Melissa Hortman says "needs are still great" across Minnesota and investments are important to get the state's post-COVID economy moving. Senator Tom Bakk (BOCK), who chairs the Senate Bonding Committee, says with federal monies headed to the state he wants to minimize the amount of borrowing done by the state.

A report from the federal government says Wisconsin hasn’t invested in its infrastructure in decades.  The White House report was issued Monday as the Biden administration tries to build support for a two-point-three-trillion dollar program to upgrade the nation’s roads and bridges.  Like most states, Wisconsin was given a grade of “C.”  Eight states were given grades of “D,” and eight more weren’t graded.  No state received an “A” or “B” – and no state failed.  Researchers estimate Wisconsin drivers pay an extra 500-dollars-a-year in car repairs due to road conditions.

The Republican Party of Wisconsin has recovered about forty percent of the more than two million dollars stolen by hackers last year.   That's according to a filing with the Federal Elections Commission. Just before the November 3 election, state party Chair Andrew Hitt said 2-point-3 million had been stolen from the party in a cyberattack. Hackers manipulated information in emails and invoices to vendors the party was using and obtained the funds that way. In an FEC filing late last month, the party noted it had recovered just over 943 thousand dollars through insurance and BMO Harris Bank's Fraud Department in coordination with law enforcement.

A Wisconsin man will be sentenced in July for fraudulently obtaining more than 600-thousand dollars in federal loans.  Forty-two-year-old Stephen Smith got the funding through the Paycheck Protection Program.  He has entered a guilty plea to one count of bank fraud.  Federal prosecutors say Smith made applications on behalf of three companies.  They told the court those loan applications included several false and misleading statements about payroll expenses.  Smith entered the guilty plea during a Monday appearance in Federal Court.

A Chippewa County judge has sentenced a man who led police on a long chase last November to two-and-a-half years in prison.  Andrew Premo had been charged with fleeing an officer.  The high-speed pursuit crossed through four communities.  Authorities used spike strips to deflate all of the tires on his S-U-V, but they say Premo kept driving on the rims until he crashed.  Authorities had to use non-lethal means to take him into custody after he refused to comply with their commands.

The Rusk County Sheriff’s Office reports it has one person of interest in custody as it investigates a fatal shooting that happened Friday.  Deputies were called about a fight near Sheldon at about 6:30 p-m.  When they arrived, they found the dead body of a man who had been shot.  The arrest was made shortly after deputies got there.  No names have been released and no charges have been announced yet.  The investigation is being shared by the sheriff’s office, the Rusk County Medical Examiner’s Office, the Wisconsin State Patrol, and the state crime lab.

 The Seventh U-S Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled Wisconsin’s Democratic governor can exclude members of a conservative think tank from his press conferences.  The federal appeals court upheld the ruling by a lower court that said Governor Tony Evers could keep the MacIver Institute for Public Policy off his email list.  The Institute had alleged the governor violated its staffers’ constitutional rights to free speech, freedom of the press, and equal access.  Federal Judge James Peterson ruled last year that MacIver can still report on Evers’ actions without being invited to his press conferences or getting emails from his office.

It’s not clear what last week’s Wisconsin Supreme Court’s ruling on the state’s eligible-voter list means for the next election.  The high court on Friday ruled local clerks, not the state, are responsible for removing more than 70-thousand voters who have either moved or not voted in years. The Elections Commission says it’s reviewing the ruling. Conservative groups say the ruling sets back efforts to make sure only eligible voters can cast ballots in Wisconsin. Liberal groups say such efforts are an attempt to disenfranchise voters. 

The entrance to the headquarters for the University of Wisconsin System is closed.  The front door to Van Hise Hall in Madison could stay closed for some time. A concrete slab fell off the building on Friday. Governor Evers has ordered all of the other slabs on the building to be removed as a precaution. The governor’s office ordered 50-thousand dollars for an emergency repair at the headquarters building. 

 U-S Senator Amy Klobuchar is working with a colleague from Maine to expand training and support services for families and caregivers of people with dementia.  The Minnesota Democrat is partnered with Republican Senator Susan Collins on the bipartisan Alzheimer’s Caregiver Support Act.  It would authorize grant money for expanding training and support services.  The senators say more than six million people in America are living with Alzheimer’s disease and that number is expected to more than double to 13-million by 2050.

Local-Regional News April 12

 A milk and cheese distribution will be held today at the Durand Food Pantry.  The distribution will be from 3:30-5pm and  there will be a limit of 2 gallons of milk per household and 4 gallons of milk per vehicle if picking up for more than one household.  A reminder to not line up on Main street until after 3:15 to held limit traffic concerns.

More events have been announced for Durand Fun Fest.    Fun Fest announced the car show will be on June 11th, and the Bean Bag Tournament and Kiddie Parade will be on June 12th.  The Committee is also looking for 8-10 people to help with the Grand Parade Lineup.     For this event, you would need to line up all the entries up by the high school, set out the cones and numbers so everyone knows where to go, direct them at start-up. Depending on how many entries we will have will depend on the number of people needed. Gators will be supplied for this project. Entries start arriving anywhere from 10:00 am on.  You may also be asked to assist Sandy Bauer with additional items.  If you would like to volunteer, send an email to funfestdurand@gmail.com 

A Rochester man is pleading not guilty for his role in a major drug bust in January.  Fifty-eight-year-old Douglas R. Howard was one of three people arrested after a traffic stop netted more than 14 pounds of methamphetamine and thousands of oxycodone pills.  Forty-seven-year-old Matthew J. Lyman of Mantorville was pulled over and five pounds of meth, four thousand pills and two guns were found in the car.  Authorities seized nine more pounds of meth at his home where Howard and Ann Jessen-Ford were arrested.  Jessen-Ford has also pleaded not guilty.  Trial dates haven't been scheduled for Howard and Jessen-Ford.

The Wisconsin Conservation Congress is set to begin its Spring Hearings on Monday, giving the public the chance to voice their opinions on a variety of topics relating to the Department of Natural Resources.  Each year, Wisconsin residents can give input on questions from the DNR, as well as resolutions from residents that received positive feedback during last year's spring hearings, and resolutions put forward by residents of each county this year.  The virtual spring hearings begin Monday at 7 p.m. and go until Wednesday at the same time.  Visit the Wisconsin DNR Website for more information.

 The Wisconsin Supreme Court is scheduled to hear arguments today on an important water pollution case.  The justices are to determine if the Department of Natural Resources failed to adequately protect water from manure pollution when it awarded a permit to a large dairy farm in Kewaunee County.  Part of the legal question is whether the D-N-R has the authority to issue restrictions like that.  Kinnard Farms is a mega-dairy farm with about 82-hundred cows.  The debate is focused on the legal interpretations of Act 21, passed 10 years ago.  The court’s ruling could have far-reaching effects on many state agencies.

People from all over the state showed up at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater Friday to tell members of the Legislature’s Joint Finance Committee how their tax dollars should be spent.  Witnesses spoke on issues like education funding, transportation, and the help that Wisconsin businesses need.  Lawmakers say it will be important to see where Governor Tony Evers spends COVID relief aid from the federal government before final budget decisions are made.  The next hearing will be April 21st in Rhinelander, then April 22nd at U-W-Stout in Menomonie, and a virtual hearing on April 28th.  The next budget takes effect July 1st.

Everyone who receives the COVID-19 vaccine also receives a card with the type of shot and the date it was given. Deputy Health Services Secretary Julie Willems Van Dijk says paper vaccine records are a thing some of us are old enough to remember.  In addition to a card, when you receive your COVID shot you'll also get information about the vaccine that you've received, and to enroll in V-SAFE, the CDC vaccine safety, and monitoring system.

The I R S says some 1 point 8 billion dollars worth of tax refunds from 2017 are about to expire. Spokesman Christopher Miller says those refunds are only good for five years.  In Wisconsin, Miller says around 19-thousand people are owed a total of 18 million dollars. If you need help filing your taxes, the I R S might have old documents on file. You can find out more online at I R S dot Gov. 

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Two western Wisconsin teens are facing felony animal mistreatment charges in Jackson County.  The criminal complaint says 17-year-old Cody Hagen-Anderson of Hixton and 18-year-old Nichols Kulig of Blair were seen on video abusing an opossum in March.  Deputies say the suspects swung the opossum by its tail, blew vape smoke in its face, poured beer down its throat, dropped weights on it and one of them stabbed it.  Investigators say Kulig later admitted to decapitating the opossum with an ax.  Hagen-Anderson and Kulig have a court hearing next month.

The Wisconsin D-N-R hopes to have more permanent rules in place for the next wolf hunt.  Wisconsin's Wolf Harvest Committee held its first meeting Thursday to go over the hunt in February, which critics have said was hastily thrown together following a lawsuit.  D-N-R officials say they'll have a final report on the hunt next week.  Hunters went more than 100 kills over the quota, and the committee will be looking at that quota and making recommendations to the Natural Resources Board.  State law requires the D-N-R to hold a wolf hunt any year that wolves aren't federally protected.

The Wisconsin Supreme Court says state election officials should not purge voter rolls.  The 5-2 ruling Friday affirms an appeals court decision that overturned an Ozaukee County judge's order from 2019.  The state's high court found that local election officials - not the Wisconsin Elections Commission have authority to purge the rolls of voters who have moved. Conservative Justices Brian Hagedorn and Chief Justice Pat Roggensack joined progressives Ann Walsh Bradley, Rebecca Dallet, and Jill Karofsky.   Justice Rebecca Bradley wrote the dissent.   The ruling means nearly 70-thousand people on a list of likely movers will not have their voter registration deactivated.

Legislation introduced Thursday by two Democratic lawmakers would let the Wisconsin attorney general file lawsuit over civil rights violations.  The A-G’s office would have the power to investigate and file suit when someone has shown a pattern of violating civil rights in matters of housing, employment, or education.  The bill’s chances are limited in the Republican-controlled Assembly and Senate.  It was introduced by State Representative Jimmy Anderson of Fitchburg and State Senator LaTonya Johnson of Milwaukee.  The bill was modeled after similar laws in states like Arizona and Oklahoma.

An increase in the motor vehicle sales tax is part of a transportation budget bill that Minnesota House Democrats have on a fast track with five weeks remaining in the legislative session.  Amber Backhaus (BACK-us) with the Minnesota Auto Dealers Association testified against the measure Friday warning it would make vehicles less affordable.  She told lawmakers that new car sales were down 15 percent in 2020 due to the COVID pandemic, and they're expected to take a few years to recover.  Supporters argue it's essentially a user fee that will help fill the gap for Minnesota's transportation needs.  The measure has no chance of passing the Republican-controlled Senate.

A bill introduced this week at the Capitol would make Colby the official state cheese of Wisconsin.  The legislation is sponsored by Senator Kathy Bernier and Representative Donna Rozard - who represent the city of Colby which is the birthplace of Colby cheese.  Bernier and Rozard said Colby began as a family farm recipe and has gone on to become world-famous and one of America's most popular cheeses.  Wisconsin cheesemakers produce more than 45 million pounds of Colby each year.  Some people argue every cheese that comes from Wisconsin is amazing.

Local-Regional News April 9

 More than three million, 250-thousand COVID-19 vaccines have been administered throughout Wisconsin. Deputy Health Services Secretary Julie Willems Van Dijk says the state "is moving in the right direction."  Here in Western Wisconsin, Pepin County has 24% of its residents who have completed the vaccine series, Buffalo County 25%, Pierce and Dunn County are at 15% completed.  So far, 35 percent of the state has gotten at least one dose of the vaccine, and just under 22 percent have completed the vaccine series.

  

Former Republican Candidate for the 3rd Congressional District, Darrick Van Orden has announced he is running for the seat again.  Van Orden lost to incumbent Ron Kind by just under 11,000 votes last year.  Van Orden says hundreds of people in the 3rd District asked him to run again and he wants to restore our constitutional freedoms and focus on fiscal responsibility.  

Two human trafficking suspects facing more than 30 charges have been arrested in Eau Claire County.  Deputies responding to a call about a woman walking on a county road between Fairchild and Stanley Wednesday morning found Catherine Ottinger lying in a ditch.  She told them she and Mark Scoville had been living in a tent in Chippewa County.  Arrest warrants for Ottinger and Scoville had been issued last month.  Scoville is charged with multiple counts including sexual assault, human trafficking, false imprisonment, and others.  Ottinger is charged with trafficking a child and causing a child to view or listen to sexual activity.

Republicans in the state legislature are calling for restrictions on elections during a hearing at the Capitol on Thursday. One major sticking point was funding from private groups to assist in elections. Republican Senator Duey Stroebel says that the sponsors behind the private funds were biased towards Democrats.  Democrat Senator Jeff Smith says over 200 communities received these funds, and Republicans are only focusing on the Democrat strongholds.   It's unlikely that any of these bills will pass by the Governor's office without being vetoed.

Firefighters from Fall Creek, Augusta, and Fairchild were called to a fire at the Black Bear Supper Club on Hwy 27 north of Augusta Wednesday.  When crews arrived they found flames through the roof and sides of the building.  The home of the supper club's owner was protected and no one was hurt in the fire.  The building is considered a total loss and no cause of the fire has yet to be determined.

 A Rochester woman is facing six federal charges for her alleged role in the January 6th attack on the U-S Capitol.  F-B-I agents arrested 39-year-old Victoria White Thursday and she made her initial court appearance.    The charges against White include violent entry and disorderly conduct, obstruction of Congress, and impeding or attempting to impede law enforcement officers.  Investigators say the video appears to show White participating in the storming of an entrance to the Capitol building.  She is accused of helping hoist a rioter, who assaulted officers trying to control the crowd.

A Clark County woman is charged with mistreatment of animals after a dog was found with its legs zip-tied together last fall. Thirty-four-year-old Jill Warminski will find out next month if her case will head to trial. Deputies were dispatched to a home in Thorp after receiving a report that a dog had been zip-tied around its front two legs. One reported a cut on the dog’s leg was so deep he could see the bone. Warminski reportedly told investigators she couldn’t take care of the dog and couldn’t find another person to take over for her.

About 144-thousand dollars in federal funding through the CARES Act will be used to help economic recovery in the Wisconsin Rapids area.  About 900 employees lost their jobs when the Verso paper mill shut down operations last year.  The federal aid will be used to develop a city recovery strategy.  It isn’t known what’s next for the Verso paper mill.  Some local groups have talked about buying the plant, but most of the workers have had to find other jobs.  At the time of the closing, Verso said it would explore “viable and sustainable alternatives.”  It indicated the mill could be restarted if market conditions improve.  That hasn’t happened yet.

Minnesota Governor Tim Walz is calling for passage of the Governor's Biofuels Infrastructure Grant Program.  It would award two million dollars in grants per year to service stations for the installation of equipment to pump higher blends of ethanol and biodiesel.  Walz says biofuels are critical to Minnesota,  our agricultural and rural economies and to help meet climate goals.  The governor touted the proposal at a Holiday Stationstore in New Hope.  Owner Christ Robbins received a state grant to upgrade his facility to offer E-15, E-30, and E-85 fuels.

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 Supporters of criminal justice reform in Wisconsin say they are encouraged by the results of a poll released this week.  The poll numbers released Wednesday show almost three-in-four Wisconsin voters want prisons to focus on preparing inmates for life after their sentence is completed.  The Badger Institute says there is strong support for helping those inmates acquire job skills that would make jobs easier to find and help avoid recidivism.  The Institute has pushed for criminal justice reform for several years.

The Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development reports more than 75-hundred people have signed up for secure messaging about unemployment benefits.  The state started using a new online unemployment portal last week.  The new system offers the ability to talk directly with claims specialists, sign up for text notifications and securely upload documents.  Importantly, it also includes a more user-friendly interface for people communicating through their mobile devices.  In the week since the new portal debuted the state has issued more than 27-million dollars in claims to 18-thousand applicants.

Wisconsin is finding out when last week’s decision by the state Supreme Court will begin to have an impact.  The ruling that struck down the governor’s emergency order means Wisconsin will begin losing more than 50-million dollars a month in emergency supplemental FoodShare benefits in May.  One day will make a difference.  The Department of Health Services says if the court had allowed the governor’s emergency order and mask mandate to continue for that one additional day, pushing it into April, FoodShare members would have been covered through the end of next month.

An 18-month-old child is in critical condition after being pulled from a pond in Stewartville Wednesday afternoon.  The boy was in a medically induced coma at St. Mary's Hospital in Rochester.  Deputies say the toddler was outside being watched by a family friend when he disappeared.  He was found in a retention pond and C-P-R was immediately started at the scene.  Investigators believe he was in the water for five minutes.  The family says he appears to be doing well and that his organs are functioning.  No word on how long he'll be in a coma.

Democrats in the Minnesota House say the transportation funding bill they are trying to pass would raise about one-and-a-half-billion dollars over a four-year period.  It would be the biggest such bill passed since 2008.  Republicans spoke out, saying the bill and tax increases were introduced late in the legislative session without any public hearings.  The measure would connect future gas tax increases to the inflation rate.  Some people giving testimony Wednesday said the bill isn’t clear about what constitutes a luxury vehicle.  It’s authored by Representative Frank Hornstein.  He says he's willing to talk about it and make adjustments that are needed.

The Department of Natural Resources has agreed not to release the records of testing for PFAS, in an agreement with the state's largest business lobby.   The agreement was announced on Tuesday, and it will confirm a judge's order that would have blocked the release in the first place. Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce says those records could damage business reputations if released, and that the D N R doesn't have any laws on the books for PFAS regulations in the first place. The Department is currently working up rules and standards on just how the contaminant will be regulated.

Assembly Speaker Robin Vos says he won’t send any more money to the Department of Public Instruction now that Jill Underly is elected superintendent. Vos says teachers’ unions own the D-P-I. Underly easily won Tuesday’s race, thanks in part to almost a million dollars in outside help from Democratic groups and the Wisconsin Education Association Council. Underly says she wants to work for all kids in the state, regardless of how their parents voted. 

Local-Regional News April 8

 Durand Fun-Fest will be returning this year.  During a committee meeting last night, 10 new volunteers attended and committee members decided to have the event move forward.  The Sunday Parade will be held and the committee is finalizing the rest of the event schedule and is requesting anyone who would be willing to volunteer to contact Funfest via their Facebook page.  Fun-Fest will be June 11-13 at Memorial Park in Durand.  Over the last few years, only 3 people have been organizing the entire event and its hoped that more will become involved to help Funfest grow.

 

The Red Cedar Speedway will be holding racing again this season after canceling last year's schedule due to the pandemic.  Dunn County and Racing Association officials have finalized a plant to allow racing at the track.  The allowed attendance for the Friday night races will be determined the Wednesday before and will be based on the number of average covid cases per 10,000 people per week.    Fans are encouraged to visit Red Cedar Speedway's Facebook page or website for the announcement on attendance numbers.    The first official race of the season will be April 16th.

 

A Wisconsin man has filed an appeal to have his guilty pleas reversed.  Twenty-four-year-old Colten Treu says his attorneys told him he would still be able to appeal the judge’s denial of a change of venue even if he entered a guilty plea.  Treu was convicted in March of last year of killing three Girl Scouts and a mother in a hit-and-run crash.  A fourth Girl Scout was injured along a road in Lake Hallie in November of 2018.  Treu is serving a 54-year sentence.  Chippewa County Judge James Isaacson ruled Treu can’t withdraw his pleas at a hearing last month.  The judge says his previous defense team didn’t make a mistake.

Students of CVTC will be back on campus for the fall semester.  CVTC plans for pre-COVID delivery of courses, including shifting classes that were previously face-to-face or MyChoice back to in-person delivery instead of the alternative online method utilized over the past year. CVTC will continue to offer online course and program options, as it did prior to COVID-19, to meet the needs of working adults.  Staff members will be returning to on-campus work this month and hope to have a full return by the fall semester.  

Two suspects are accused in the December drug overdose death of a man in Eau Claire County.  Prosecutors say 19-year-old Noah Beckstead of Ettrick and 33-year-old Trenton Wik of Eau Claire are facing one count of reckless homicide.  Wik is also charged with selling fentanyl.  The victim's body was found in a parked car in December.  Beckstead told investigators that he and the victim were drinking and doing other drugs and then injected what he thought was heroin.  The autopsy showed the man died of a fentanyl overdose.  Officers say Wik sold him the drugs.  His first court appearance is Thursday.

The Legislative Fiscal Bureau says Republican plans for spending three-point-two-billion dollars in federal stimulus money might not be allowed.  The Bureau reviewed those plans and just issued its analysis.  The proposals call for spending about 626-million dollars of the money on things prohibited by federal law.  Another billion in property tax cuts and some money earmarked for unemployment insurance might have to be repaid.  A package of 11 bills was discussed in a Wednesday public hearing before the Legislature’s Joint Finance Committee.

Wisconsin election officials say the voter turnout for Tuesday’s spring election was just barely over 20-percent.  There was only one statewide race on the ballot – where Jill Underly defeated Deb Kerr by about 16 percent in the race for the Department of Public Instruction superintendent.  Early figures show a little over 921-thousand ballots were cast in that contest.  Four years ago the spring election drew only 16-percent of eligible registered voters to the polls to cast their ballots.

 Federal investigators say photos show 42-year-old Michael Fitzgerald of Janesville inside the U-S Capitol during the January 6th insurrection.  Fitzgerald is the second person from Wisconsin facing federal charges for taking part in the attack.  The F-B-I accuses him of being one of the first people to force their way inside, saying he was in there for about 40 minutes.  He faces three counts – obstruction of law enforcement during civil disorder, entering and remaining in a restricting building without lawful authority, and violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds.

University of Wisconsin System students who get vaccinated for COVID-19 will no longer have to be tested weekly for the virus.  It's a policy interim UW System President Tommy Thompson announced on Wednesday, calling it an incentive to increase campus vaccination rates. Thompson says the change is designed to maximize vaccination numbers prior to students returning home this summer. Efforts to get as many faculty, staff, and students vaccinated as possible are key to Thompson's pledge to hold at least 75 percent of fall classes in person.

Three Wisconsin cities are asking a federal judge to make former President Donald Trump cover their legal fees.  Green Bay, Kenosha, and Racine are asking for reimbursement of 42-thousand dollars.  The legal fees are attached to the case Trump brought challenging Wisconsin’s presidential election results.  Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers has already asked a court to award the state 145-thousand dollars in legal fees from the former president connected to the same lawsuit.  Trump argued the Republican-controlled Legislature should decide who gets Wisconsin’s ten electoral votes, saying this state’s voting practices are improper.

The legal battle isn’t over.  A ruling by a Wisconsin appeals court that lets the names of businesses with COVID-19 outbreaks be made public is expected to wind up before the state Supreme Court.  The Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce joined other groups in the suit against the Evers administration.  It was aimed at blocking the release of the names of more than a thousand businesses with at least 25 employees who have had two or more of them who tested positive for the virus.  The groups that brought the lawsuit argue disclosing those names would further hurt businesses already struggling during the pandemic.  The names of those businesses will remain a secret while the appeal is moved on up to the Wisconsin Supreme Court.

The Department of Natural Resources says it has conducted a study that concludes high-capacity wells are draining three lakes in central Wisconsin.  Former Governor Scott Walker signed legislation mandating the study released Tuesday nearly four years ago.  It looked for the impact those wells might be having on Long, Plainfield, and Pleasant lakes in Waushara County.  The study found more than 200 of the high-capacity wells have impacted the ecosystems and recreational use of the lakes.  A water-use district could be created to implement new steps aimed at reducing the impact the wells are having.

No one was injured Sunday when a concrete slab fell off the façade of the University of Wisconsin System headquarters building.  When the section of concrete hit the sidewalk three stories below part of it shattered and another part fell on a dumpster.  Officials at U-W-Madison are investigating.  They say no construction work was being done at the time that might have precipitated the slab separating from the front of Van Hise Hall.  The dumpster had been placed in front of the building during renovation work that was being done on a restroom.

Members of the Wisconsin Legislature’s Joint Finance Committee questioned the outgoing Department of Public Instruction superintendent Tuesday about several things – including when in-person classes will resume.  The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the way Wisconsin public schools have responded dominated the hearing.  Lawmakers asked whether more than two billion dollars in federally allocated funding is going to the right school districts.  State Superintendent Carolyn Stanford Taylor told committee members she doesn’t have the authority to order schools to reopen.  Taylor stressed that would be a local decision.

The state’s elections agency will study voting at nursing homes, rather than push for new rules.   The Elections Commission has decided against creating a new rule -- or pushing for a new law -- to clarify how to handle voting during a pandemic. Commission members say with vaccinations rising and coronavirus cases remaining flat, there’s not as much of a chance that nursing home voting will be an issue. The problem last fall was that nursing homes were closed to visitors, including special voting deputies who were supposed to help people who live in nursing homes cast their ballots. 

 The Minnesota Lottery is using a new scratch game to raise awareness about the state's bumblebee and other native pollinators.   The Bee Lucky scratch ticket featuring the endangered rusty patched bumble bee went on sale Tuesday.  Players scratch a "Bee Informed" box to reveal facts about Minnesota's pollinators.  The tickets cost two dollars and the top price is ten thousand dollars.  The proceeds will support environmental projects to improve pollinator habitat.

 Stillwater police say a 10-year-old boy who led officers on a chase in the family minivan told them he was going to the store to buy Cheerios.  The small driver was spotted by an officer Sunday at about 9:30 p-m.  The boy speeded up when the officer activated his emergency lights, reading speeds of 50 miles an hour.  Police were able to block his path, ending the chase with nobody hurt.  The boy told officers he was headed to Target or a downtown co-op to buy Cheerios for breakfast.  The parents said they were sleeping and had no idea he’d taken the minivan.

Local-Regional News April 7

 There will be two new board members on the Durand-Arkansaw School Board.  Unofficial results show that Ashley Urness and Frank Schneider both won their respective seats.  Urness will be taking the District 2 seat while Schneider will replace incumbent Audry Martin in the District 5 seat.

Buffalo County Voters have approved a non-binding resolution asking the state to have an independent commission to design the next statewide electoral maps.  The vote was 1306 in favor to 562 against.  Also last night a tie in the Buffalo City Alderman race between Larry Johansen and George Fuller.  Both received 86 votes and in the City of Alma, all three alderperson seats had write-in candidates.  

Dunn County will have a new circuit court judge.  Christina Mayer, a Menomonie attorney defeated Nicholas Lang to replace Judge Rod Smeltzer who is retiring this year.  Mayer started her legal career in Durand before joining a firm in Menomonie.    Smeltzer is retiring after spending more than 20yrs as a circuit court judge in Dunn County.   Meanwhile, Gregory Gill was elected to the Wisconsin Court of Appeals for District 3, defeating Rick Cveykus.

Jill Underly has won the statewide election to serve as Wisconsin superintendent of schools.  Underly had the support of the state teachers’ union and had 14 times as much money for her campaign as Deb Kerr did.  The winner got 52 percent of the vote Tuesday.  Though the race for D-P-I head is officially nonpartisan, Democrats backed Underly while Republicans were behind Kerr.  Underly replaces Carolyn Stanford Taylor who has held the position for the last two years.

One person is dead after a one-vehicle accident in Emerald Township Monday night.  According to the St. Croix County Sheriffs Department,a caller at 6am Tuesday morning said there was a car blocking Hwy S and the driver appeared dead.  Deputies say 26yr old Luke Loomis of Glenwood City was traveling on Hwy S when he lost control and struck a railroad bridge pillar the night before.  The accident is still under investigation.

A Red Wing man faces six felony charges for failing to pay state income tax.  The Minnesota Department of Revenue says Eric Donald Olson failed to file his state income tax returns and didn’t pay the tax for 2017-through-2019.  Olson is said to be a professional walleye angler who got non-employee compensation from several outdoor equipment suppliers, plus marketing and media companies.  Prosecutors estimated he owes nearly 55-thousand dollars in taxes, penalties, and interest.  If convicted, he could face a sentence of up to 30 years.

Governor Tony Evers says around 93-hundred small businesses in Wisconsin will share 46-million dollars in federal COVID relief funding.  The Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation is awarding them each five-thousand-dollar grants.  Evers said in a statement, "our small businesses have had to innovate to stay afloat this past year and that's why it's critically important we make sure they have the resources to bounce back from this pandemic."  The 46 million will be distributed to impacted businesses that applied for relief for the "We're All in" phase 2 program last year but for which additional funds were not available.  The Department of Revenue says they’ll begin processing the latest grants as quickly as possible.

A group of about 100 Marshfield residents say they want the people running their city investigated and removed from office.  Three complaints were filed Monday with the City of Marshfield and the Marshfield Police Department.  Targeted are Fire and Police Commissioners Andy Keogh and Randy Gershman, plus seven of the 10 members of the common council.  The group filing the complaints says they believe the common council members have committed misconduct.  They point to the removal of the mayor from office, violations of open meeting laws, and the failure to maintain electronic records.  Similar complaints were filed against Keogh and Gershman.

Minnesota fire officials are reminding Minnesotans not to operate drones near the scene of wildfires this spring.   Leanne Langeberg with the Interagency Fire Center says drones pose a dangerous risk to aircraft dropping water and retardants.  She says all aircraft responding to a wildfire are required to land or return to base when a drone shows up in their restricted airspace.   More than 500 wildland fires across the state have burned nearly 20-thousand acres so far this season.

Sawyer County authorities have identified the woman found dead of a gunshot wound on Friday.  42yr old Cary Elkin of Stone Lake was found early Friday morning after the Sheriff's Department received a call reporting the woman.  The Sheriffs Department and Wisconsin Department of Justice continue the investigation but have no suspects at this time.  It appears to be an isolated incident and the public is not in danger.

Authorities in Clark County say a 23-year-old shooting suspect is being held there after his arrest in Puerto Rico.  Prosecutors are expected to charge Joennuel Moctezuma-Torres with attempted first-degree homicide and first-degree recklessly endangering safety.  A second suspect was arrested about a month after the shooting last year.  Investigators say surveillance video shows the two suspects leaving the location of the shooting while armed with handguns.  Moctezuma-Torres has an initial court appearance scheduled for April 20th.  Police say the shooting victim was treated for a gunshot wound and released in February 2020.

Gas prices in the Madison area and in much of Wisconsin are sitting at about a dollar-25 higher than they were at this time last year.  Prices have been driven higher by OPEC’s decision to limit production, more drivers on the roads as the U-S emerges from the pandemic, and the Texas cold snap that knocked several refineries off-line.  There’s no relief in sight.  OPEC is increasing is oil production, but people are driving more miles and many refineries are switching to the more expensive summer blend of gas.

Regional agriculture leaders, including Wisconsin Ag Secretary Randy Romanski, are encouraging people to get vaccinated for COVID-19, and to continue to help slow the spread.  The appeal, posted to YouTube on Thursday, includes leaders of agriculture departments from six states (Wisconsin, Minnesota, Illinois, Michigan, Ohio, and Kentucky.)

A family out for a hike on Easter Sunday reports a scary experience when bullets began whizzing overhead.  A woman named Heather and her husband were on the Lodi Marsh segment of the Ice Age Trail when things started happening.  Heather has asked that their last name not be released.  About a mile-and-a-half into their walk they heard several gunshots, then the bullets started to come too close.  Heather says they heard a bullet hit a branch above their heads.  She and her husband told their children to run and two other hikers on the trail took cover.  No one was hit and when Dane County deputies responded to the 9-1-1 call, they couldn’t find the shooters.

A Rochester man is alive Tuesday thanks to the actions of law enforcement officers.  The 31-year-old was overdosing on pills Monday night outside a Walgreens store when officers and deputies used Narcan to revive him.  A friend told officers he thought the victim had taken Percocet, but investigators believe the drug was more than likely fentanyl.  Authorities say they've responded to thousands of cases related to little blue pills over the past four months.

The Wisconsin State Patrol reports a driver stopped twice for speeding on Interstate 41 used the same excuse two times – she had to use the bathroom.  The first traffic stop came when she was clocked at 102 miles an hour near Oshkosh.  A few minutes later she was stopped for going 90 miles an hour and tried to use the same excuse.  That’s when the trooper who stopped her pointed out she had passed four exists with several bathrooms available.  The driver’s name hasn’t been released.  She was cited for excessive speed.

Local-Regional News April 6

 Two people were injured when a logging truck owned by Next Level Excavation of Durand collided with an SUV in Fountain City Monday.  According to the Buffalo County Sheriffs Department, Richard Kurtzhals was traveling westbound on  Hwy 95 when his logging truck was unable to stop at the intersection of Hwy 35 and 95 and struck the SUV driven by Stephanie Foster of Buffalo City.  The SUV was pushed through a cement barrier and into a spillway where it was wedged on its side.  The logging truck went down an embankment, tipped onto its side, and became wedged under a railroad bridge at the edge of the Mississippi River.  Foster was med-flighted to Gunderson Lutheran Medical Center with life-threatening injuries and Kurtzhals was taken to Winona Health with serious injuries.  Hwy 35 was closed for several hours due to the accident.

Polls will be open today (Tuesday) from 7:00 a-m to 8:00 p-m for Wisconsin’s Spring Election.  Voters can return absentee ballots to clerk offices, drop boxes, and polling locations.  Face coverings are highly recommended but not required.  The rules say a voter can’t be refused a ballot for not wearing a face mask.  Don’t forget to bring a photo I-D to the polls.  That can be a driver's license, a state I-D card, a U-S passport, military and veteran’s I-Ds, tribal I-Ds, a certificate of naturalization, and some student I-Ds.  The biggest race on the ballot this time is for the Department of Public Instruction superintendent.  Locally there are races for two contested seats on the Durand-Arkansaw School Board.

One person was injured in a one-vehicle accident in Gilman Township on Sunday.  According to the Pierce County Sheriff's Department, 36yr old Robert Jeffery was traveling westbound on Hwy 29 when he lost control of his vehicle, entered the north ditch, and overturned.  Jeffery was ejected from the vehicle. and was taken to Western Wisconsin Health in Baldwin and then onto Regions Hospital.

One person was injured in a motorcycle accident near Maiden Rock on Saturday.  According to the Pierce County Sheriff's Department, 26yr old Lauren Nelson of Prescott was traveling westbound on Hwy 10 near Hwy A when she failed to see a slowing vehicle in front of her.  Nelson attempted to brake and lost control of the motorcycle laying it down on its side.  Nelson was taken to Mayo Hospital in Red Wing.

On Monday, the  Dunn County Health and Human Services Board approved a resolution advising all residents to comply with the most recent Health Advisory, which directed that all residents of Dunn County should wear a face covering, covering mouth and nose completely, when indoors or in a public space other than a private residence, and when in other settings including outdoors when physical distancing is not possible. 

Firefighters from 6 departments battled two grass fires in the town of Wheaton Monday.  The fires happened just south of 29 Pines along 30th avenue which burned approximately 50 acres.  Fire officials say the first fire was caused by a cigarette and the second was caused by faulty farm equipment.  Some much-needed rain fell overnight and is expected over the next few days to help with the dry conditions.

With the onset of spring and the warming temperatures, ticks and other bugs could become more and more prevalent. Health officials say the best way to avoid ticks, in particular, is by layering up a sunscreen with bug repellant whenever going outside for extended periods of time. Ticks should be removed promptly if found with a pair of narrow-bladed tweezers.

Authorities in Cadott say a person at a nearby truck stop spotted a fire at a motel and ran over to wake people up and get them out.  Eight people had to seek hospital treatment after the fire at Countryside Motel at about 6:00 a-m Saturday.  One of the victims was hospitalized overnight.  Officials with Cadott Area Fire and Rescue say they believe either a discarded cigarette or a nearby patio heater started the fire.  The damage to the motel was estimated at about 200-thousand dollars.

Olmsted County Sheriff's Deputies responded to a home in Rock Dell Township Sunday evening after the homeowner discovered someone had shot his house. The 29-year-old man indicated he returned to his home and noticed a strange odor inside the house. Several hours later, the man discovered a bullet hole near the front door. It's suspected the odor was caused by the dust and other materials disturbed by the bullet as it went through the wall. Investigators have not been able to identify any reason the home would have been intentionally targeted.

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 The La Crosse County Emergency Response team got involved in a Sunday morning standoff with an armed man.  Family members found an estranged relative sleeping on the enclosed back porch of their home at about 7:00 a-m.  No names have been released.  Police were called to help remove the man.  When they arrived, he pulled out a gun, so the family was evacuated.  Onalaska police asked the county for help and, when the man pointed his gun through a window, a chemical irritant was thrown into the enclosed porch.  That convinced the unwelcome man to surrender.  The incident is being investigated.

Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett has sent a letter to Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred – urging him to bring the 2021 All-Star Game to Cream City. Barrett says he fully supports the commissioner’s decision to take the game away from Atlanta over new voting regulations in George. He says since baseball planned to honor the life of the late Hank Aaron, it would make sense to bring the contest to the place where the former home run champion began and ended his career. The last time Milwaukee hosted the game was 2002. So far, no comment from Major League Baseball or its commissioner.

The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources says there are several ways to minimize the chances you will encounter a bear.  Now is the time of season bears are coming out of hibernation.  Their metabolism is accelerating and they are hungry.  Wildlife experts say you should hang bird feeders at least 10 feet above the group and away from trees.  Avoid putting feed for wildlife on the ground and make sure your grills are thoroughly cleaned after each use.  Trash needs to be in a bear-proof container.  If you have things that can attract a hungry bear, it will remember and come back – and possibly cause some issues.  Wisconsin’s black bear population is estimated at a little over 24-thousand.

More than 20 percent of Wisconsinites have completed their COVID-19 vaccinations.  The Department of Health Services reported Sunday that more than three million vaccine doses have been administered, and more than a million Wisconsinites are now fully vaccinated.   Anyone 16 and older in Wisconsin is now eligible to receive a COVID-19 shot starting Monday. The state department of health services says to schedule the shot as soon as possible.   DHS also reported that the seven-day average of new cases per day continues to increase, and is now three-point-three percent.   

It remains very dry, across Wisconsin.  And wildfire danger remains very high. Governor Tony Evers on Monday signed an Executive Order declaring a State of Emergency in response to elevated wildfire conditions throughout Wisconsin. That will make state resources available, including the Wisconsin National Guard. The Department of Natural Resources has suspended all burning permits and is asking everyone to continue to avoid outdoor burning of any kind, including campfires.

At least they didn’t have to go looking for him.  The Burnett County Sheriff’s Office has arrested a 49-year-old Shell Lake man – after he parked his car right outside the front door of that office.  The man’s name hasn’t been released.  A state trooper checked on the driver of the vehicle Sunday afternoon and he was arrested after failing a field sobriety test.  The O-W-I suspect was then taken to an area hospital for a blood draw.  The man was arrested for O-W-I eighth offense.  The trooper was called when a witness reported the car outside the sheriff’s office with all of its doors and its hood opened.