The Durand City Council is meeting tonight. Items on the agenda include discussion and possible action on the installation of pedestrian crossing signs with the Durand-Arkansaw School Districts, salary options for part-time Durand Police Officers, and increasing on-call pay for the city ambulance service. Tonight's meeting begins at 6:30 at Durand City Hall.
Chippewa Falls police say a juvenile suspect has been arrested in the death of a 10-year-old girl. W-E-A-U / T-V reports Lily Peters went missing Sunday night and her body was discovered Monday morning. Chippewa Falls Police Chief Matthew Kelm says the suspect and victim knew each other. Kelm says his department got more than 200 tips and some of them were critical to the investigation. Nearly 20 federal, state, and local agencies worked on the case. The family was notified of the arrest before a news conference was held Tuesday afternoon.
The Dunn County Health Department is announcing that the 2022 Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA) is complete. In collaboration with community partners, the Dunn County Health Department conducts the CHNA survey every three years. This survey allows the Health Department us to learn about the needs of the community directly from those who are affected by the issues. The survey indicated mental health and wellness, chronic disease prevention, a healthy environment, housing and alcohol, and other drug addictions should be priorities of the department.
The Pepin County Health Department and Pepin County Sheriff’s Department, in cooperation with the Wisconsin Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), will participate in National Prescription Drug Take-Back on Friday. Three separate events will take place at the permanent drop box locations in Pepin County from 10 am to 3 pm. Heike Pharmacy, the Village Hall in Pepin, and the Sheriff’s Department all host a permanent box and encourage everyone to clean their medicine cabinets for this one-day event. Unused or expired medicine should never be flushed or poured down the drain. Water treatment facilities are not designed to remove all pharmaceuticals and trace amounts are showing up in rivers and lakes.
Federal charges have been filed against a southern California man who made online threats aimed at the Eau Claire School Board and at least 13 other entities. If 34-year-old Jeremy D. Hanson is convicted of making violent threats he faces up to five years in prison. Other targets were dictionary publisher Merriam-Webster, the Hasbro toy company, the Walt Disney Company, the Land O Lakes food company, and the city of Madison alder. Hanson was apparently angered by those he perceived to be Marxists and their stance on gender-identity issues. The man from Rossmoor, California was arrested last week.
Congresswoman Angie Craig is co-sponsoring a bill that would temporarily suspend the federal gasoline tax. The Gas Prices Relief Act would put the 18-point-four-cent gas tax on hold until next January. The Minnesota Democrat says, “Congress must do all it can to lower costs for working families.” Craig is also calling on Minnesota lawmakers to temporarily pause the state’s 28-and-a-half-cent gas tax for the rest of the year. The Second District representative notes that action on the state and federal levels could reduce gas prices by 47-cents a gallon.
Minnesota House Democrats have made an offer to Senate Republicans to try to break a year-long stalemate over replenishing the Unemployment Insurance fund. The bill would take two-point-seven billion dollars of the budget surplus -- the amount Republicans want -- to replenish the fund and forestall business tax increases. There would also be one billion dollars for frontline worker COVID bonuses, giving all those eligible a 15-hundred-dollar check. The offer so far is getting the cold shoulder from Republicans -- North Branch Representative Anne Neu Brindley says the offer “doesn’t have an agreement in the Senate, and it certainly doesn’t have an agreement with Republicans in the House.”
Neenah police say they are looking for the person who left a plastic tub full of puppies on a city sidewalk Sunday night. Community Officer Joe Benoit (BEN oit) says the puppies were taken to the local animal shelter where they could be cared for. Benoit says calls and tips are already pouring in. The dogs will be observed at the shelter before they are offered for adoption. Benoit says the owner who dumped the puppies could be cited for a municipal violation or they could face criminal charges.
A federal judge has sentenced a convicted felon to three years in prison for illegal gun possession. Twenty-eight-year-old Alex Richard VanErp of Faribault, Minnesota had pleaded guilty last September. Authorities had identified VanErp as being involved in multiple thefts in Wisconsin. Prairie du Chien police posted a video from one of the theft on Facebook and employees at a store in Fayette County, Iowa called 9-1-1 to report VanErp was there, making a purchase, at the time. The suspect tried to run away when law enforcement officers arrived but he was taken into custody. He had drugs and one of the stolen firearms in his possession when he was arrested.
Some Democrats voted with the Republican majority as the Minnesota Senate passed a get-tough-on-crime package, on a vote of 48 to 19. Before Monday’s vote, Democrats proposed crime-prevention measures, but about one of them, Maple Grove Republican Warren Limmer said lawmakers have a choice: “Help catch violent offenders,” or “spend the money on...178 agencies and give them three million dollars.” D-F-L Senator Dandy Pappas (PAP-us) of St. Paul fired back, saying if Republicans “were sincere about really wanting to address the problem of crime in the state of Minnesota, we would be funding dozens of programs.... Crime prevention is what we should be focusing on.”
U-S Senator Amy Klobuchar is applauding the news that the V-A will expand disability and health benefits to veterans who became ill from potential exposure to toxic substances. The move by the Biden Administration applies to veterans suffering from nine rare respiratory cancers. Klobuchar says she has fought for years to ensure veterans and servicemembers who were exposed to toxic substances, including burn pits, receive the care and benefits they need. The Minnesota Democrat co-sponsored a 2018 law aimed at improving treatments for veterans exposed to burn pits. The military burned chemicals, batteries, munitions, and other waste in the pits in Afghanistan and Iraq.
The head of the investigation of the Republican election is getting support from former President Trump to keep his job. Former President Trump released a statement on Monday saying that "Anyone calling themselves a Republican in Wisconsin should support the continued investigation in Wisconsin without interference." That statement doesn't mention Assembly Speaker Robin Vos by name, but the head of the investigation, Mike Gableman, recently spoke with Trump confidant Steve Bannon to lobby for his job, and State Representative Janel Brandtjen, who heads the Assembly elections committee wants to extend the investigation. Speaker Vos says he wants to end the probe this month.
Finding common ground on drought relief continues to evade the two chambers of the Minnesota Legislature. Representative Samantha Vang, the vice-chair of the House Agriculture Committee, says some of the biggest differences include funding amounts for farmers and producers. Vang says the House bill evenly distributes drought relief funds while the Senate version provides less to specialty producers. She says those farmers “have been the most impacted by the drought (because) they have no safety net when a drought occurs, and they lost their crops and that was it -- there’s no crop insurance to help them and keep them afloat.”
Valleyfair’s oldest roller coaster is getting repainted. The High Roller has been operating since Valleyfair first opened its gates in 1976. Park officials say the coaster will stay white and will require about 12-hundred gallons of paint. Valleyfair is set to open this year on May 20th. The High Roller is an out-and-back type of rollercoaster. It is 70 feet high at its highest point and reaches a speed of 50 miles an hour.
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