Police in Menomonie are looking for a number of men who they say robbed the ATM at WESTconsin Credit Union. It happened about 1 a.m. Monday morning. Police say multiple men pulled up, broke into the machine, and took some cash. The credit union says there was no personal information in the machine. Yesterday, the credit union said it was working to get the ATM back online. Police are looking through surveillance video to see if they can identify some suspects.
Dollar General is getting in trouble again for charging too much. Wisconsin's Department of Agriculture, Trade, and Consumer Protection yesterday said the company agreed to pay 800 thousand dollars to shoppers throughout the state. DATCP says it looked at prices in 238 different Dollar General stores in January and February and found that hundreds of them rang up higher than the price on the shelf. On average, the state says, Dollar General charged 17 percent more than advertised. The company paid over 10 thousand dollars back to customers in 2018 after being hit with a similar complaint.
The Pepin County Health Department wants the public to know that free in-home covid 19 tests are now available. The U.S. government is offering to send another round of four at-home virus tests ahead of the typical surge in cases during the winter holiday season. Anyone who did not order a batch of four COVID-19 tests in September can secure up to eight of them this time around at COVIDtests.gov. The U.S. Postal Service will deliver them for free. For more information contact the Pepin County Health Department.
Lawyers for the teenager accused of beating, raping, and killing 10-year-old Lily Peters have more than two dozen reasons why he says the case should be tried in juvenile court. New court documents show the suspect's lawyers believe he will be better served by a trial in juvenile court and a sentence in juvenile detention. The teen, who was 14-years-old when police say he allegedly killed Peters last year, is waiting to go on trial. The decision about juvenile or adult court is just the first step. That decision is due before January.
A Wisconsin fugitive is in custody after being located in Mexico. Eau Claire area media report that the sheriff's office has confirmed that Shane Helmbrecht was detained over the weekend and was being held in the Cook County jail in Chicago, awaiting extradition to Eau Claire. Helmbrecht is charged with first-degree intentional homicide for the 2016 death of Jenn Ward in her Eau Claire home. He went missing from a halfway house in Tomah in September. He was found in New Mexico, but police at that time had no grounds to hold him. A judge then ordered him to return to Eau Claire County, but he failed to do so.
A bi-partisan bill that is awaiting Governor Tony Evers’ signature aims to preserve farmland. The bill lowers the length of time for a farmland preservation agreement from 15 years to 10 years. It would also increase various farmland preservation tax credits. It essentially allows farmers to keep farming. Senator Patrick Testin (R-Stevens Point) says over the years Wisconsin farmers have lost lots nearly one million acres of farmland not a lot of people have been talking about it until now. The bill is set to be sent to Gov. Ever’s desk on Nov. 30.
Wisconsin's governor is once again saying 'No' to a tax cut from Republican lawmakers. Governor Evers yesterday vetoed the proposed two billion-dollar tax cut, calling it an unserious plan. Republican lawmakers want to use Wisconsin's record, nearly seven billion-dollar budget surplus to pay for the tax cut. The governor says he'd rather spend the surplus on child care, a Medicaid expansion, and other programs. This is the second time the governor has scuttled a Republican tax cut this year. He vetoed a three billion-dollar tax cut out of the state budget over the summer.
Wisconsin's Supreme Court will hear arguments to redraw the state's political maps today. A number of Democrats and progressive groups in the state want the new liberal-majority Supreme Court to toss out the current maps because they favor Republicans. The maps, they say, are gerrymandered and unfair. Republican lawmakers say the request goes too far because it would also undue the 2022 elections for State Senate, and force more than a dozen lawmakers to run again next fall. The case is being closely watched, not just because Wisconsin is a swing state, but because newly elected Justice Janet Protasiewicz faced calls to recuse herself because of what she said about the maps during last year's supreme court election.
Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport said the Thanksgiving holiday could be their busiest travel season in four years. On Wednesday and Sunday, it's projected that 38 to 40 thousand people will be at the MSP airport. Officials say to arrive at the airport early to get to the gates on time. Authorities also say there will be a cell phone lot on Post Road where people can pick up their loved ones. Triple A estimates about 4-point-7 million will travel by plane for Thanksgiving.
It's a supply-versus-demand situation with broadband in Wisconsin. The state’s Public Service Commission says demand for the expansion of broadband in Wisconsin far exceeds the $42 million that’s available for the state’s Broadband Infrastructure grant program. The commission says 125 applications for that program requested an overall total of more than $221 million. In his state budget, Governor Tony Evers requested $750 million for broadband expansion, but the state Legislature turned that amount down over the summer.
Funds to help the mental health of veterans around Wisconsin are announced. The Wisconsin Department of Veterans Affairs says just over $470,000 of aid will be sent to several organizations through two Veteran Mental Health grant programs. The grants are part of Governor Tony Evers’ $10 million investment in veteran services, funded through the American Rescue Plan Act. The first program will directly offset the costs for individual veterans receiving emergency and crisis mental health treatment through resources in Kenosha, Waunakee and Washington County; while a second will fund long-term and complementary mental health treatment for veterans through five resources around the state. The state veterans’ agency says they will announce a second round of ARPA-funded Veteran Mental Health grants in the coming weeks.
A legislative task force hopes to get a handle on truancy in Wisconsin. Representative Amy Binsflied chairs the Speaker’s Task Force on Truancy. The Sheboygan Republican said there are multiple areas that can be addressed. But first and foremost, and that truancy is disadvantaging some children from learning what they could. The task force has held hearings in Madison, Milwaukee and Crivitz, and will meet once more at the Capitol on December 5. Binsfield is hopeful the bipartisan panel can make recommendations that are applicable statewide, without "tying the hands" of local school districts.
Wisconsin has its first case of bird flu for 2023. The Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection reported Friday their identification of a case of highly pathogenic avian influenza in a backyard flock in Taylor County. The bird flu infection is the state’s first since November 7th of last year. Over the past month, Iowa, Michigan, and Minnesota have announced new cases of avian flu in domestic flocks. The state agency is encouraging flock owners to engage in strong biosecurity measures to keep their birds from getting the virus.
Minnesotans this past week took to social media to comment about a manure-like odor that covered a lot of the state. Melissa Wilson is an associate professor at the University of Minnesota, and specializes in manure nutrient management and water quality-she says it's a common issue that she detects nearly every fall. Farmers lay out fertilizer on their fields ahead of winter, but recent cold weather, followed by warmer than normal conditions can create the odor. Wilson adds the fertilization process is about recycling nutrients back into the ground for crop production next year.
Don't drive drunk. And especially don't drive drunk to the county jail to bail-out your friend who was just arrested for drunk driving. Authorities in Washburn County say a local man learned that lesson the hard way Saturday night. The State Patrol arrested 36-year-old Anthony Koprowski in the jail parking lot for OWI after jail staff said he looked drunk. Koprowski was there to pick-up a friend who'd been arrested for drunk driving earlier that night. Police say Koprowski also had a six-year-old child in the car. He was taken to jail, and the six-year-old was given to a sober family member.
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