Four
people were arrested last Thursday after a disturbance near Hwy 10
and Harvey Road in the Town of Mondovi. According to the Buffalo
County Sheriffs Department, a person had been assaulted with a tire
iron and then struck by a vehicle driven by the same person. A
traffic stop of the suspect vehicle was made by the Pepin County
Sheriffs Department on Hwy 10 and all four were arrested. Arrested
were 30yr old Jenah Love of Holmen, 28yr old Tonya Novak of La
Crosse, 28yr old Chad Downs of Eland and 26yr old Jacob Vosseteig of
La Crosse. All four were charged with Armed Robbery and Substantial
Battery. Additional charges are pending related to methamphetamine
and Heroin which is believed to be contributing factors in the case.
One
person is dead after a one vehicle roller accident on Interstate 94
on Sunday. According to the Wisconsin State Patrol, a 30yr old woman
from Black River Falls was traveling eastbound on I-94 near mile
marker 82, when she lost control, entered the median, crossed the
eastbound lanes into the ditch and rolled several times. The driver
was ejected from the vehicle. The name of the victim has not been
released pending notification of family members.
Officials
at the Mayo Clinic are apologizing for sending furlough letters to
302 employees who shouldn’t have received one. The letters
were confirming an April announcement about furloughs and reduced
hours impacting 30 thousand staff members at all Mayo locations.
A spokesperson says apology notes have been sent to those who got the
notifications by mistake. Mayo says the furloughs are part of
its financial stabilization strategy so it can make it through the
coronavirus pandemic.
Despite
revisions to the latest edition of Governor Tim Walz's stay at home
edict, Republicans in the Minnesota Legislature spent the weekend
voicing criticism of the decision to not open the state further. The
most pointed words came from Mazeppa Representative Steve Drazkowski
who called Walz a "failed and misguided leader", adding the
stay at home order should be ended. House Minority Leader Kurt Daudt
and Senate Majority Leader Paul Gazelka echoed similar calls for the
Governor to reverse course on the order. Walz says the extended order
allows thousands of Minnesotans to get back to work while avoiding
what he claimed is the danger of a spike in COVID-19 infections.
Western
Wisconsin's congressman wants family farmers to get some small
business bailout money. Farmers are ineligible for the Paycheck
Protection Program. La Crosse congressman Ron Kind is asking the
Small Business Administration to deal them in. Kind says the S-B-A
can work with the Agriculture Department to make sure small farms use
P-P-P money properly. Kind says farmers need all the help they can
get.
Don't
put away your lederhosen just yet, organizers of Oktoberfest in La
Crosse won't make a decision until July. The board of directors says
if there is an Oktoberfest this year, it will be done safely and in
full compliance with government guidelines. Officials say the group
is lucky to have a few months to decide how to proceed, since
Oktoberfest usually happens in late September. Officials say they'll
make a decision in mid-July, but that may also change as conditions
change.
The
Wisconsin Supreme Court has agreed to decide whether to keep Governor
Tony Evers’ “Safer at Home” order in place. Republican
legislators filed a lawsuit claiming that Evers and Health Services
Secretary-designee Andrea Palm exceeded their authority, when Palm
extended that order until May 26th. The state's high court will
hear oral arguments Tuesday morning during a 90-minute video
conference. G-O-P leaders say they want a seat at the table in
determining when businesses may reopen. Assembly Speaker Robin
Vos and Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald say they sent a
letter to Governor Evers Friday requesting a meeting to discuss a "
unified, bipartisan approach to the state’s coronavirus pandemic
response."
Ohio-based
Nationwide Insurance says it is shifting some of its offices to a
work-from-home model permanently. The company says employees in
five states, including Wisconsin, will do all of their work from home
starting no later than November. Nationwide officials confirmed
Thursday they are transitioning to a hybrid corporation with many
employees not situated in an office. Five major working hubs
will continue to operate.
The
Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources is accepting input on its
plan for the state’s Central Sand Hills region. No public
meetings are on the schedule due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The plan will cover 67 state-managed properties covering more than 90
thousand acres in parts of nine counties. Some of the
better-known properties included are Devil’s Lake, Grand River
Marsh, Parfrey’s Glen, and the Gibraltar Rock Natural Area.
Input will be accepted through June 12th.
One of the easiest ways to participate is online.
A
U-S Navy contract valued at almost 800 million dollars could mean up
to a thousand new jobs to the Marinette area. Fincantieri
Marinette Marine will build up to 10 guided-missile carrying
frigates. The Department of Defense says the contract could be
worth more than five-and-a-half billion dollars over the next 15
years if all of its options are exercised. The basic contract
calls for one frigate to be built with an option for nine more.
Marinette Marine’s bid won a competition against shipyards in
Alabama, Maine, Mississippi and Maryland.
U-S
Attorney Erica MacDonald is going after Minnesota landlords taking
advantage of tenants during the COVID-19 pandemic. MacDonald
says she's hearing reports nationally about landlords requesting
sexual favors or other acts of unwelcome sexual conduct in exchange
for rent abatement or similar types of concessions. She says
that behavior is illegal under the Fair Housing Act. Minnesota
Attorney General Keith Ellison has take action against four landlords
who tried to evict or disconnect utilities of tenants during the
pandemic
The
Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection
has approved an emergency bill barring the state’s landlords from
charging late fees and penalties. The move is designed to help
renters with the financial challenges presented by the coronavirus
pandemic. It stops those kinds of charges from being applied
during the current public health emergency – and for three months
after it ends. State officials plan to hold a public hearing on
the emergency rule later this month.
The
State Justice Department has opened up a new online tool to help
people learn more about crimes in Wisconsin. Attorney General Josh
Kaul says the new Uniform Crime Reporting program will allow
residents to learn more about what crimes are happening where they
live, as well as see the state's responses to crime. Of importance in
that data is a running count of tested and untested sexual assault
kits in the the state. You can see that information online at D O J
dot state dot W I dot US
The
Department of Agriculture will begin flying planes while spraying for
gypsy moths in western Wisconsin later this month. Ag officials
announced earlier this week that the low-flying planes will be seen
in 18 counties. The spraying program is dependent on weather
conditions and it will also be affected by when the caterpillars
begin to hatch. State scientists say the spray isn’t toxic to
people, bees, pets or wildlife.
The
world's largest fly-in convention is the latest event in Wisconsin to
be cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic. Organizers
announced that E-A-A AirVenture Oshkosh 2020 will not be held at
Wittman Regional Airport July 20th through 26th. E-A-A chairman
Jack Pelton said Wisconsin is still under a stay at home order until
May 26th," which
completely eliminates our ability to start grounds preparation May
1st. The re-opening of the state also has no specific dates,
creating uncertainty about mass gatherings in July." All
pre-sold AirVenture 2020 admissions and camping reservations can be
rolled over to the 2021 event or are eligible for refund.
Minnesota
Democrats are blasting Republican Senator Scott Jensen of Chaska for
golfing during a Senate Health and Human Services committee hearing
on Zoom. Senate Minority Leader Susan Kent said, "his
actions were disrespectful not only to Minnesotans but to all of our
Senate colleagues and staff who are working incredibly hard to
respond to the public health emergency we are currently in.”
Senator Jensen is a doctor and an amendment under discussion would
allow telemedicine providers to prescribe medications for substance
abuse disorder during the COVID-19 pandemic. Kent is calling
for Senate Majority Leader Paul Gazelka to denounce his behavior.
No response yet from Senator Jensen.
Thousands
of gallons of beer are going down the drain due to the coronavirus
pandemic. Wisconsin breweries say they are dumping kegs of beer
because the outbreak has closed bars. The brewers who make
Spotted Cow are using the unsold beer for fertilizer. Bosses at
the New Glarus Brewery estimate they will dump between five and 10
thousand half-empty kegs in the next few weeks.
No comments:
Post a Comment