Top Stories May 1st

Possible Flu Cases Lead to Declaration of Public Health Emergency

5/1/09 - Governor Jim Doyle has declared a public health emergency in Wisconsin. The state now has five probable, but unconfirmed, cases of swine flu, after two more cropped up yesterday in Sheboygan and Ozaukee counties. Doyle told the state’s public health agency to do what’s necessary to respond. Stockpiles of anti-viral medications will be given out as needed, and Wisconsinites can get them whether they have health insurance or not. The governor also authorized the National Guard to help. The state has submitted 228 suspected flu cases to the Centers for Disease Control for testing. Most turned up negative, and 41 others are pending. Most cases involved people who traveled to Mexico or places close to it. But Milwaukee health officials say that’s no longer a crucial factor, now that the H-One-N-One virus is here. At least seven schools in Milwaukee are closed today. Doyle has not called for large events to be canceled but quote, “we are monitoring this hour-by-hour.”

Authorities Still Looking for Mother of Abandoned Infant

5/1/09 - The woman who gave birth to the baby girl found dead Wednesday night could be suffering from medical issues due to a “difficult delivery.” Dodge County Sheriff Todd Nehls says health professionals have told him the woman could be having complications from the birth that she may not figure out until it’s too late. An autopsy on the child was performed yesterday but authorities have not released anymore information outside of the child’s sex and that she is Caucasian. Investigators are asking anyone with information to contact the Sheriff’s Department or the anonymous We-Tip Hotline at 800-78-CRIME.

Law enforcement agencies are also reminding the public there are alternatives to abandoning a newborn in an unsafe place. Molly Soblewski with the Sheriffs Department says Safe Haven laws allow a mother to drop-off a newborn at a hospital, law enforcement agency or place of worship without questions and without the worry of criminal charges.

Best Western Robber Gets Seven Years

5/1/09 - Seven years in prison for a Horicon man who robbed the Best Western – Campus Inn last fall. Curtis Pautsch pleaded “no contest” in February to a felony charge of Robbery with the Use of Force and had a count of Threats to Injure dismissed but read into the record. The 24-year-old entered the hotel on Park Avenue in Beaver Dam just after 4am on October 3 and left with a bag full of cash hidden inside a garbage can. Authorities say the desk clerk identified Pautsch by a tattoo on his hand and other distinguishable facial features. He had 15 prior convictions, including two felonies. Pautsch was also sentenced to five years of extended supervision and ordered to pay $5100 in restitution.

Sires Get One Year For OD

5/1/09 - A Beaver Dam man entered a “no contest” plea yesterday (Th) to charges related to an overdose death. Mark Sires was in Dodge County court for an initial appearance, but instead waived his rights to a preliminary hearing, entered the plea and proceeded to sentencing. The 55-year-old got one year in the Dodge County jail on a charge of First Degree Reckless Homicide. Sires supplied 34-year-old Mark Wampole methadone in February of 2008. Wampole and his girlfriend spent the night at Sires mobile home and the girlfriend discovered him dead the next morning. Sires is constrained to a wheelchair and held valid prescriptions for methadone. Judge Andrew Bissonnette told Sires that if he senses a person befriends him with the intent of using his prescription drugs, then he has to report that person to his probation agent. Sires was also placed on probation for 20 years and ordered to pay $5000 in restitution for funeral expenses.

Four Injured in Lowell Wreck

5/1/09 - A young girl was seriously injured in a two-car accident Thursday in the township of Lowell. The wreck occurred just after 2pm on State Highway 16/60 at the intersection with County Highway J. Authorities says a westbound SUV driven by a Pardeeville woman failed to yield and collided head-on with an eastbound pick-up truck operated by a 52-year-old Madison man. Three of the injured parties were transported to Beaver Dam Community Hospital. The girl, a preteen from the Pardeeville-area, was taken to UW Hospital - Madison by Flight for Life. The crash remains under investigation.

Retirement Party for Koehn Today

5/1/09 - Today is the last day on the job for Beaver Dam Deputy Fire Chief Randy Koehn. After three decades with the department, Koehn had planned on retiring last year, but the abrupt departure of former Fire Chief George Sheets changed those plans as Koehn once again stepped into the interim role of Fire Chief. Koehn is being replaced by Alan Mannel of Matteson, Illinois who has been on the job for the past month. Mannel says Koehn has been invaluable during the transition. A retirement party will be held this morning at the Beaver Dam Fire Station beginning at 9am for those wishing to congratulate Koehn on his retirement.

Legislature Puts Movie Tax Credits Back in Budget

5/1/09 - Hollywood’s movie cameras will keep rolling in Wisconsin, if state lawmakers have their way. The Legislature’s Joint Finance Committee voted 16-to-nothing late last night to restore the tax credits for movies and T-V productions that Governor Jim Doyle scrapped in his proposed state budget. Doyle would have to ultimately approve the changes. Eligible films would get up to three-million-dollars in tax breaks over the next two years, and there would be no limit after that. There would also be tax credits of up to 25-percent for Wisconsinites who are hired, and 20-percent for non-residents with certain limits. And at least 35-percent of a movie’s total budget would have to be spent in Wisconsin. Doyle dropped most of the movie incentives after the Johnny Depp film “Public Enemies” received four-and-a-half million in tax breaks – almost as much as what the producers spent in Wisconsin.

Voter Identities to be Verified

5/1/09 - State election officials will start verifying the identities of thousands of voters this month. Attorney General J-B Van Hollen wanted the checks done before last fall’s elections, and he failed to win a lawsuit to do it then. But in January, the Government Accountability Board agreed to check voter registrations dating back to 2006. Those checks will start soon, and are expected to be finished by the end of the year. Election officials said the checks would have been too cumbersome while they were getting ready for last year’s voting. And a judge said it would have disenfranchised voters whose names appear differently on their voter registration forms and their driver’s licenses. The identity checks are required under federal law.

Peeper Faces Charges

5/1/09 - A furnace repairman is accused of poking holes in a wall, to try and see a woman taking a shower in an adjacent bathroom. 35-year-old Dominic Swoboda of Chippewa Falls appeared in Eau Claire County Circuit Court yesterday on misdemeanor counts of invading privacy and disorderly conduct. According to prosecutors, Swoboda was working on a basement furnace at a home in Eau Claire on March 19th, while a 21-year-old woman was showering close by. The next day, she noticed holes in the wall. Police said Swoboda used a screwdriver to poke a few holes to try and see the woman – but he couldn’t see anything. He’s due back in court June 10th.