Pepin County Sherrif's Deputy Darrin Lowenhagen has been selected as the inaugural K9 Handler for the Pepin County Sheriff's Department. Sometime this summer, Lowenhagen and a K9 partner will undergo 5 weeks of training. Once they complete the training, Deputy Lowenhagen and the K9 partner will complete a State Certification prior to going on duty in Pepin County. It is expected Lowenhagen and the K9 partner will begin working in the county in September or October.
One person was injured in a motorcycle accident in the township of Cross on Saturday. According to the Buffalo County Sheriffs Department, Aaron Nelson was traveling westbound on Hwy 95 and failed to negotiate a curve, crossed the centerline, and then into the ditch. Nelson was airlifted to Gunderson Hospital with undetermined injuries. Speed is believed to be a factor in that accident.
The Mondovi City Council is meeting tonight. Items on the agenda include a discussion of a request from the Buffalo County Humane Association for a donation to the cat fund, discussion of the industrial park real estate sales agreements, and reports from the Mayor and department heads. Tonight's meeting begins at 6:30 at the Marten Center.
One person was injured in a UTV crash in Gilman Township on Friday. According to the Pierce County Sheriffs Department, 41yr old Mitchell Vanasse was operating a UTV on Private Property when he lost control and the UTV rolled on its side. Vanasse was transported to Regions Hospital in St. Paul.
The Town of Lincoln in Eau Claire County has passed a moratorium on wind farm development. The 6-month moratorium will give the town board time to consider an ordinance that would establish rules for developers of wind farms to protect the health and safety of residents and the environment, and would include property value protections for those within 2 miles of the project. RWE Renewables Americas has proposed a development of a wind farm just South of Hwy 12
Motorists traveling between Nelson and Wabasha can expect traffic delays starting next Monday. The Minnesota Department of Transportation will be work on the Hwy 60 Bridge over the Mississippi River. The bridge will be painted and expansion joints will be replaced. The bridge will be reduced to one lane and traffic signals will be used to direct motorists through the project. That project will run through the summer and be completed in September.
Republicans on the Legislature’s Joint Finance Committee say rejecting the governor’s plans to raise taxes and spend a lot of money means Wisconsin will likely have a two-and-a-half-billion-dollar budget surplus in two years. State Senator Howard Marklein says Wisconsin is in great fiscal shape and it’s due to his party’s spending decisions over the last decade. Right now, Wisconsin’s surplus is at about one-point-eight-billion dollars and there’s almost a billion in its Rainy Day Fund. Lawmakers have sliced hundreds of the governor’s ideas as they work on the two-year spending plan. They decided to start from scratch last week.
Support is growing for Governor Evers’ proposed 100- million-dollar investment fund. Republican Assembly Speaker Robin Vos says he supports the idea of a state-based investment fund but says he wants to see some better returns on Wisconsin’s previous investments before he agrees to let the governor to invest 100-million dollars on his own. Evers and several business groups in Wisconsin say having a venture capital fund would allow businesses to stay in Wisconsin and get the help they need to grow.
The state of Wisconsin has agreed to pay a wrongfully convicted man 25-thousand dollars for his 1995 case. Sam Hadaway was found guilty of attempted robbery in the death of Jessica Payne in Milwaukee. His friend, Chaunte Ott, was found guilty of killing Payne. D-N-A testing on semen found at the crime scene connected Payne’s death to serial killer Walter Ellis. Prosecutors finally dropped their case against Hadaway three years ago. The Wisconsin Claims Board awarded the money to him Monday.
Republican leaders of the Wisconsin Legislature are expected to appeal a decision by a Dane County Circuit Judge that was handed down Monday. Judge Stephen Ehlke refused to put his April ruling on hold. Ehlke determined that the lawmakers illegally hired private taxpayer-funded attorneys to represent them in a case. The lawmakers wanted the judge to put his ruling on hold so their contracts with those attorneys wouldn’t automatically be voided. Legislative leaders hired the attorneys for anticipated legal challenges over redistricting efforts.
Two lawmakers in central Wisconsin are pushing a plan to use 50-million dollars in stimulus money to reopen a closed paper mill. Nine hundred people lost their jobs when the Verso mill in Wisconsin shut down operations last summer. State Representative Scott Krug and state Senator Patrick Testin suggested using the coronavirus relief money last week to help a local coalition buy the closed mill. Krug and Testin say finding a new buyer would not only help the 900 workers who lost their jobs. It would also help Wisconsin timber companies find a market for their wood. The Legislature would still have to approve the idea – and Governor Tony Evers would have to sign the bill because the project would move forward.
Authorities in Clark County have charged a Mosinee man with stalking a woman who has gone missing. Prosecutors say 41-year-old Jesus Contreras Perez stalked the victim several times between July 5th and October 2nd last year. The woman hasn’t been seen or heard from since October 3rd. Several witnesses have told investigators the woman had bruises caused by Contreras Perez and she was scared of him. He reportedly stole her phone last September at a gas station. The court documents don’t identify the missing woman, but Cassandra Ayon went missing from Clark County last October 3rd. A judge ruled last week there is enough evidence to take the case against the man to trial.
The Minnesota House is expected to pass a bill legalizing marijuana this week, but its future in the state Senate isn’t too promising. Democrats control the House, but the Republican-controlled Senate may never bring it up for a vote. That’s not the slam-dunk it used to be. Some Republicans are beginning to ease their opposition. South Dakota voters – in a more conservative state – have voted for legalization and some House Republicans have indicated they support the idea. House Majority Leader Ryan Winkler tells W-C-C-O Television some Republicans and Independents support it. He maintains “It’s not a partisan issue.”
Wisconsin nurses say they have to be advocates for patients, but they’ve learned during the coronavirus pandemic they have to advocate for themselves, too. Nurses held a “Speak Out” event at the state Capitol Saturday, calling for a seat at the negotiations table. U-W Health nurses had their union disbanded 10 years ago. At the Saturday event, they pointed to the need for adequate personal protective equipment and proper staffing levels. As the pandemic winds down, some say they are suffering from P-T-S-D and don’t feel like they are supported by the public.
Changes to Minnesota’s car emission standards could clear the way for the sales of more electric and hybrid vehicles. Judge Jessica A. Palmer-Denig approved those changes Friday. They would put Minnesota’s emission rules in line with more than a dozen other states. The changes would force automakers to bring more electric vehicles and hybrid models to Minnesota. Governor Tim Walz and officials with the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency said the changes would help put Minnesota in line with stated goals of reducing greenhouse gases. There will be no immediate impact because implementing the rule could take several model years.
Wisconsin is cutting its coronavirus vaccine order by 90- percent. Wisconsin was scheduled to get more than 162-thousand doses this week. But now, the Department of Health Services says it only needs about 13-thousand. The smaller order is a reflection of the lower demand for the vaccine in Wisconsin. The number of doses administered recently fell to its lowest point since January.
People in Wisconsin can continue to declare themselves “indefinitely confined voters.” The Wisconsin Elections Commission recently sent a letter to local clerks about updating their voter rolls. The Commission says clerks need reliable information before deactivating an indefinitely confined voter. But Commission Administrator Meagan Wolfe says simply seeing voters out and about, even returning a ballot to the election office, is not reliable enough. Lawmakers say indefinitely confined voters are supposed to be sick or homebound. They say Wolfe’s letter goes against the intent of the state’s indefinitely confined voter law.
Minnesota's fishing opener is this Saturday, May 15th. The D-N-R says it has over 16-hundred managed access sites ready for anglers. Officials say warm spring weather has allowed them to have even more of the sites than normal ready to go ahead of the opener. Sales of fishing licenses are also reportedly up this year, unsurprisingly, after state-imposed restrictions a year ago dampened enthusiasm early in the fishing season.
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