The Durand City Council is meeting tonight. Items on the agenda include discussion of an appraisal on the parking lot located at West Madison and 2nd Avenue West, and reports from the Mayor and Department Heads. Tonight's meeting begins at 6pm at Durand City Hall.
The City of Mondovi is working to have the police department fully staffed. At last night’s council meeting, the city administrator announced the department will be holding interviews next week with 5 applicants for the open positions. It was also announced that Laurie Larson would be selected to take over the Ward 1 council seat. Larson still needs to be approved by the council at the next meeting.
A new study classifies 15 Wisconsin counties, including Dunn County, as "legal deserts" with insufficient attorneys to represent private clients. David Peters, a rural sociologist at Iowa State University, led the research team, which found 11 percent of rural counties in the 48 contiguous states are legal deserts. Peters says that because obtaining a law degree comes with a lot of student debt, many attorneys go into private practice in larger cities where the money is. That can put rural residents charged with crimes at risk for longer sentences. Pierce, Buffalo and fifteen more Wisconsin counties were classified as "emerging legal deserts." Pepin County was found to be above average for legal representation.
A Menomonie firefighter and his K-9 are among the first responders being dispatched from Wisconsin to help aid in Texas search and recovery efforts. More than 100 people have died and at least 160 are missing after weekend flooding in the central part of the Lone Star State. Lieutenant Andrew Kissh and his K-9 named Reaper left for Texas early yesterday as part of Wisconsin Task Force 1.
Flyers traveling out of Chippewa Valley Regional, La Crosse Regional and airports across the state and nation can now go through security without having to take off their shoes. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem announced yesterday that the security protocol at the nation's airports for nearly 20 years has now been ended. Noem says there will be individuals at times that will be asked to remove their footwear if agents think there is a need for an additional layer of screening but that, otherwise, the technology that is in place now gives TSA the ability to allow travelers to keep their shoes on.
Charges are being filed against an Eau Claire teenager accused of trying to acquire machine gun conversion devices. Authorities say they recently intercepted a package containing implements that can give a regular handgun the ability to fire as a machine gun. Investigators followed the address on the package to 17-year-old Jayden Cadmus, who they say later demonstrated that he knew about the website from which the devices had been purchased. Cadmus was arrested and bond was set at five thousand dollars.
Residents of Fountain City are being asked to stay off the sand at Fountain City Park. According to city officials, the sand was accidentally sprayed with weed killer. It is recommended that kids, adults and pets stay off the sand until the weed killer dissipates. The city will post further updates when the sand is again safe.
Seven people had to be rescued after going through a dam and locks in western Wisconsin. W X O W reports that 6 adults and 1 child were rescued on Monday after their boat was sucked through the gates of the Genoa Lock and Dam on the Mississippi River in Vernon County. Genoa Fire Chief Mike Hanson says this was a miracle, as most people don't survive that. Deputies remind everyone to wear their safety equipment and keep away from dams and other structures in the water.
The Northern Wisconsin State Fair opens today in Chippewa Falls. Livestock, agriculture and craft exhibitions will take place during the run of the event along with live music, carnival rides and lots of food options. Country music artist Montgomery Gentry is tonight's music headliner. The fair runs through Sunday.
A win for Governor Tony Evers from the Wisconsin Supreme Court. In a 4-3 decision, the court invalidated the ability of the Legislature’s Joint Committee for Review of Administrative Rules to overturn state agency rules. The court’s liberal majority said the Wisconsin Constitution mandates any law must pass both chambers of the Legislature and be presented to the governor. The Evers administration had challenged the committee’s suspension of an administrative rule which attempted to ban the practice of conversion therapy and another creating commercial building standards. However, the decision could extend to other areas including environmental and public health regulations.
Two of Wisconsin's congressmen are calling on Canada to do more to prevent wildfire risk. Republicans Tom Tiffany and Glenn Grothman wrote to Canada's ambassador Kirsten Hillman with a request to raise the issue with national agencies and the forest service. The congressmen were joined by four other legislators in their letter to Hillman.
The ROTC program at the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh is getting eliminated. Cuts by the U.S. Army are causing the removals of the program at ten universities starting in the summer next year. ROTC programs at UW-Madison and Marquette University will not be impacted. About 40 students participate in the program across Fox Valley.
Two people are dead and a third is injured after an incident in rural Portage County: Officers were called to a home in the Town of New Hope on Sunday. They found one person dead in the front yard, and another inside the home, both with gunshot wounds. A third person, who was armed, approached officers as they were investigating and did not comply with orders to drop their weapon. They were shot by a Portage County deputy and immediately treated for injuries, then taken to a local hospital. There's been no update on their condition, the officer who fired has been placed on administrative leave. Officers from Marathon and Wood Counties will handle the investigation. Names of those involved have not been released.
A Minnesota senator injured in a June shooting spree is out of intensive care. Senator John Hoffman was released from a hospital intensive care unit, with a spokesperson for Hoffman and his wife saying he is now at a rehab facility. Hoffman and his wife were injured in the June shootings that claimed the lives of state lawmaker Melissa Hortman and her husband. Vance Boelter was charged in U.S. District Court with stalking and murdering Hortman and her husband, in addition to stalking and shooting Hoffman and his wife in what were called "targeted political assassinations." Over 45 state and federal officials were listed in a notebook of Boelter's as potential targets.
Tuition hikes are proposed for the Universities of Wisconsin. UW President Jay Rothman asked for an up to five-percent tuition increase this morning. The increase would apply to resident undergraduate students for the 2025-2026 school year. The UW Board of Regents will consider approving the change on Thursday.
A Wisconsin candle company is raising funds for those affected by the floods in Texas. Door County Candle Company has created a special, vanilla-scented candle and 100% of the profits will go towards flood relief efforts. The 16oz handcraft candle sells for just under $30, and the company's website says it will burn for 75 hours. It's not the first cause the Sturgeon Bay company has contributed to, having raised money for Ukraine aid, victims of California and Hawaii wildfires, hurricanes Ian and Helene, and the earthquake in Syria and Turkey.
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