Landmark Conservancy has purchased a 364-acre Meridean Barrens property from Xcel Energy, protecting important habitats in Dunn County. The area is part of the unincorporated community of Tyrone that existed along the Lower Chippewa River. In the 1970’s the land was acquired by Xcel Energy’s subsidiary, Northern States Power, as a potential nuclear power plant site. The majority of the funding for the purchase was secured through a North American Wetland Conservation Act (NAWCA) grant with additional support from the Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Fund administered by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR).
The Menomonie Police Department is asking the public for help in finding more information about an attempted break-in at a car dealership in Menomonie. The department posted on its Facebook page that officers responded to an alarm at a car dealership on June 15 and found a door damaged. After reviewing security video they saw a black sedan drive around the building before backing into the door. The vehicle appears to be a 2013 BMW Series 5. If anyone has any information they are to call Menomonie Police or Dunn County Crime Stoppers.
A driver who was involved in a police chase that left an officer injured has been sentenced to four years in prison. The incident started when the officer spotted a car that had been reported stolen out of Minnesota. W-Q-O-W/T-V reports that 49-year-old John Martin of Eau Claire was sitting in the vehicle. Police say he refused to obey commands and ran into the Regency Inn, slamming a door on the officer’s arm. Martin managed to get back to the stolen car and drove off, going the wrong way on Interstate 94. He pleaded guilty to three counts in Eau Claire County Court and was sentenced Tuesday.
Firefighters from the town of Campbell were able to rescue four people from a stalled houseboat on the Mississippi River Tuesday night. No injuries were reported. A person on the boat told W-K-B-T/T-V that the propeller failed and the boat started drifting with the current. The houseboat was stranded on the river for more than an hour. No injuries were reported and the boat will be repaired.
A potential power shortage may be a concern in Wisconsin this summer. Wisconsin Public Service Commission member Ellen Nowak tells Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce this week that the possibility of blackouts should be a wake-up call. Demand for energy is expected to be high, and the operators of the Midwest’s power grid have been warning that there aren’t enough reliable replacements for fossil-fuel power plants that are being taken offline. The power grid is also impacted by planned maintenance and forced outages.
The Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development is awarding more than four million dollars in grants to ten Minnesota communities for the cleanup of contaminated sites. The state funding is expected to leverage 368 million dollars in private investment. DEED officials say the investments will create 326 new jobs, retain 448 jobs, and add over a thousand housing units. The grants cover up to 75 percent of cleanup costs. The awards went to Faribault, Golden Valley, Hibbing, Hopkins, Mankato, Minneapolis, St. Louis Park, St. Paul, Willmar, and Winona.
A Tomah man found guilty of beating a 3-year-old child to death in Tomah in 2019 is sentenced. Monroe County Judge Mark Goodman called 37yr old Marcus Anderson a violent and unstable man and sentenced Anderson to life in prison without the possibility of parole. In May of 2019 Tomah Police responded to a home where they found 3yr old Kyson Rice in need of life-saving care. Rice died at Tomah Memorial Hospital. An autopsy revealed that Rice had suffered multiple blunt force trauma injuries which resulted in death. An investigation led to Anderson being arrested and charged with the child's death.
A video shows Wisconsin Congressman Mike Gallagher urging the president to stop the riot at the Capitol last year. Members of the House January 6th Committee viewed that video Tuesday. It shows Gallagher telling Donald Trump he is the only one who can stop the riot. He urged Trump to “call it off,” saying “the election is over.” The video was an add-on to the testimony from former White House aide Cassidy Hutchinson who quoted the president as saying “they’re not here to hurt me” when he was told some of the people at his rally that day were carrying weapons. Trump had said he wanted Secret Service metal detectors to be removed.
Sheboygan County District Attorney Joel Urmanski says he would prosecute abortion providers who break the law. Urmanski says he prosecutes laws based on how they are written and he plans to do that when it comes to violations of Wisconsin’s abortion laws. The comment follows last week’s decision by the U-S Supreme Court to overturn the landmark Roe-V-Wade ruling on abortions. W-T-M-J/T-V reports dozens of prosecutors have assured abortion doctors they won’t wind up in court for performing an abortion. There are four abortion clinics in Wisconsin – including a Planned Parenthood office in Sheboygan.
The suspect of last year’s Waukesha Christmas parade attack is changing his plea to not guilty by reason of mental defect. If three psychiatrists uphold the assertion by Derrell Brooks, Junior’s defense team, his lawyers would then need to prove their client didn’t know right from wrong the day he drove an S-U-V through a parade crowd, killing six people and injuring dozens more. The determination from the doctors is due in August. Brooks’ trial is set to start in October.
The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources is reporting a large fish die-off in the Fox River and lower Green Bay. Scientists say the reason for the die-off isn’t known and water quality samples have been normal. W-B-A-Y/T-V reports the main species affected are channel catfish, carp, and sheepshead. Authorities say the dead fish have been found near the De Pere Dam and in the bay. Some were also found in southern Door County. A catfish collected Sunday is being tested but the information gathered may not help solve the mystery.
There’s now a second confirmed case of monkeypox in Minnesota. The latest case, like the first, is in the Twin Cities area, and both people are believed to have contracted it while traveling overseas. The C-D-C says monkeypox is similar to smallpox, but is milder and rarely fatal, and can be contracted through prolonged close contact. Symptoms include a rash resembling pimples, fever, headaches, aches and pains, chills, exhaustion, and swollen lymph nodes.
The state Supreme Court rules a member of the Wisconsin Natural Resources Board doesn’t have to relinquish his seat, even though his term expired last year. Fred Prehn of Wausau was appointed to the board by former governor Scott Walker. His term ended in May of last year. But in a 4-to-3 decision, the justices are upholding a Dane County judge’s ruling that Prehn may keep serving until a successor is confirmed by the state Senate. But so far, Republican leaders have declined to schedule a confirmation hearing for Governor Evers’ appointee. The board sets policy for the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources.
Registration is now open for the 2022 Minnesota State Fair Amateur Talent Contest. Nearly 20 thousand dollars in prize money will be awarded to amateur musicians, dancers, jugglers, ventriloquists, and other talented folks. Auditions run from July 25th through July 31st at the Lenie Lodge Bandshell. Semifinalists will be picked to perform during the first ten days of the State Fair and those winners will advance to the finals on September Fourth on the Grandstand.
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