Local-Regional News November 12

Earlier this week the, state Department of Health Services announced the first COVID-19 related death in Pepin County means all 72 Wisconsin counties have now recorded at least one death due to the virus. DHS also reported 7,048 confirmed positive cases and 62 deaths, bringing the statewide toll to 2,457 lives lost. And, with the state's chief medical officer Dr. Ryan Westergaard warning we're near "a tipping point," the Wisconsin Hospitals Association reported 2,102 COVID-19 patients and 441 in intensive care.

A police pursuit that began in Chippewa Falls finally ended 15 miles away in Eau Claire when the fleeing vehicle slammed into a bridge and caught fire.  Chippewa Falls police had been chasing a hit-and-run suspect.  Several law enforcement agencies were involved in the chase by the time the vehicle crashed.  The driver was shot with a non-lethal round when he began to reach for his waistband after refusing to get out of the burning car.  His name hasn’t been released.  He was turned over to Chippewa Falls police after being medically evaluated.

Mondovi City council members are having to decide on a new insurance plan for city employees. The city is having to switch providers as the WEA Trust will no longer be available so the city is exploring on having Blue/Cross Blue Shield as the insurance provider. The city will be in the small group category, and could see an increase of about 12% in premiums in the first year.

Eau Claire police are notifying residents that someone has been using their non emergency number to make prank phone calls. Police say residents have been receiving calls from their 715-839-49-72 number accusing the resident of crimes and other issues. Police say that is a fake call and to just hang up.

The Menonomie School District is the latest district to move to a virtual learning format. Earlier this week the district sent out letters to family members announcing the change due to increasing covid-19 cases due to increasing cases among staff members. Students have the rest of the week off and will return for the 2^nd quarter on Monday in a virtual format which will run until at least November 30^th and then will be reviewed. Student in the Durand-Arkansaw School District have just returned to in person learning after two weeks of virtual learning.

 Two more charges have been added against a Wisconsin man accused of killing his grandparents.  Twenty-one-year-old Adam Rosolowski made an appearance in Rusk County Court Wednesday by Zoom.  Rosolowski faces two counts of first-degree intentional homicide.  Investigators say he shot Robert and Bonnie Rosolowski because he wanted their truck.  He told detectives the two had “messed up” his life after they took him in.  The new charges filed last week are car theft and resisting or obstructing an officer.  He was arrested last June after a police pursuit.

 The Minnesota Legislature has its sixth special session of the year today (Thursday 12 p-m) over Governor Tim Walz's COVID emergency orders. Republicans have tried to end the governor's powers and force his hand by removing cabinet members, but it appears this time they'll try a different approach.  The G-O-P is proposing a bill allowing the legislature to selectively cancel certain emergency orders -- perhaps bar and restaurant restrictions -- instead of ending every one of them.  Red Wing Representative Barb Haley argues," the governor has said, this will take all of us working together to manage the COVID. Well, 'all of us' should include the legislature."

The Mayo Clinic is expanding COVID testing hours due to increased demand - and a spike in southeastern Minnesota cases.  The new testing site hours are 9 a-m to 7 p-m in Red Wing and Rochester starting Thursday.  Mayo officials say new COVID-19 testing records are being set every day.  Patients need to schedule an appointment through the Mayo COVID Nurse Line or their primary doctor.

With over two-thirds of Wisconsin counties through their canvass process, President Trump is losing ground on President-elect Joe Biden. Canvassing numbers posted late Wednesday afternoon at the state Elections Commission website showed Biden adding 16 votes to his total, while Trump had lost 216. The biggest change was in Shawano County, where what appeared to be a data entry mistake on election night gave Trump 636 votes. The correct number was 362. The four most populous counties -- Milwaukee, Dane, Waukesha and Brown -- have yet to post their canvass results, a process which must be completed by next Tuesday.

Wisconsin Assembly Speaker Robin Vos acknowledges an investigation into last week's election would be unlikely to find enough cases of fraud to overturn the results.  Vos said, "we're not going to do . . . some kind of a hunt based on what happened in other states or those kinds of things. We have to see real evidence in Wisconsin. So if there is real evidence I want it to be able to come forward."  The Wisconsin Elections Commission has issued a memo rebutting allegations of impropriety.  Vos is directing the Assembly Campaigns and Elections Committee to use its subpoena power to investigate.

 Environmental groups and wildlife advocates are planning to sue the U-S Interior Department over the decision to remove gray wolves from the protected species list.  Two groups say they will go to federal court if the protections aren’t restored.  Wisconsin authorities have said they are confident they can manage the wolves in this state.  The move by the Trump administration puts states and tribes in charge of overseeing the populations.  It opens the door to more wolf hunting. Gray wolves almost became extinct, but they have recovered.  They still aren’t present in much of their historical range.

The Wisconsin Department of Corrections says empty guard towers weren’t why two inmates were able to escape the state prison in Portage last April.  Thomas Deering and James Newman climbed the high prison fence and left the state before they were caught in Rockford.  Their escape led to the resignation of the warden at the Columbia Correctional Institution and the firing of seven prison workers.  Another employee at the facility was found guilty of helping the men get out.  Department records show four of the five guard towers weren’t staffed when the two inmates with violent criminal histories escaped.

President-elect Joe Biden is reportedly considering U-S Senator Amy Klobuchar for a cabinet position.  The Minnesota Democrat was mentioned as a possible running mate for Biden last spring.  The New York Times and C-N-C are reporting that Klobuchar is a candidate for U-S agriculture secretary and attorney general.  Klobuchar has advocated increasing support for agricultural commodities, disaster programs, crop insurance and renewable fuels.  She served as Hennepin County attorney for eight years before being the first woman from Minnesota elected to the U-S Senate in 2006.

 Drivers over the age of 60 will continue to get extra time to renew their drivers’ licenses.  The Wisconsin Department of Motor Vehicles says the people affected will have until January 21st to renew their license without paying a late free.  The D-M-V hasn’t been as picky as usual during the COVID-19 pandemic, but the deadline isn’t extended for people under 60.  The option of renewing online is no longer available to drivers over the age of 65.

Leadership remains largely unchanged in place heading into a new legislative session. Assembly Speaker Robin Vos and Majority Leader Jim Steineke were reelected Tuesday by their Republican colleagues. Representative Kevin Petersen will succeed Mary Felzkowski, who was elected to the Senate last week, as assistant majority leader. Assembly Democrats again elected Representatives Gordon Hintz and Dianne Hesselbein as Minority Leader and Assistant Minority Leader. Senate Democrats, who lost two seats last week, reelected Senator Janet Bewley as minority leader. Republicans last week elected Senator Devin LeMahieu to replace Scott Fitzgerald as majority leader. Fitzgerald is headed to Congress.

 Minneapolis City Council members have debated – then approved – a plan to spend 500-thousand dollars to hire outside police officers for the city.  Many officers left the Minneapolis Police Department after the unrest dating back to the killing of George Floyd.  The half-million dollars would pay for extra patrols by the Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office and Metro Transit Police.  The approval didn’t come easy and the discussion was tense at times.  Police Chief Medaria Arradondo says his department needs help to respond to calls for assistance.  Tuesday was a committee meeting.  The full council votes Friday.

 There’s an influx of new students at Hennepin Technical College during the pandemic.  School officials say veterans who lost their jobs during the COVID-19 outbreak are now using their G-I benefits to change careers.  The college says it has 65 vets enrolled this fall.  This comes on top of a 38-percent increase in veterans attending the college last year.  It also comes at a time enrollment at the school among traditional students is down.  The veterans are seeking jobs that are more recession-proof while businesses like that the veterans have skills and a good work ethic.