Top Stories, October 1st

Badger Honor Flight Sets Sail

10/1/10 - The final Badger Honor Flight of the year takes off early Saturday morning. Honor Flight is a nationwide program that fly’s World War II veterans to their memorial in Washington DC at no charge. Kelly McMillan is the Chair of the Beaver Dam Fundraising Committee for the local chapter. There are four veterans from Beaver Dam heading out tomorrow. McMillan says they are on a strict timeline for this flight because there are 14 other Honor Flights from around the country flying into Washington DC on the same day in an effort to beat the winter weather. McMillan says she hopes there is a good turnout at the Dane County Airport Saturday evening where the Badger Honor Flight is expected to land around 9:15pm. Badger Honor Flight encompasses Dodge County and ten other counties. McMillan says there are still over 200 World War II veterans on the waiting list. Donations can be made to PO Box 258066 Madison, WI 53725.

High Speed Chase Suspect Waives Prelim

10/1/10 - A Burnett man has waived his right to a preliminary hearing on charges that he led police on a traffic pursuit before crashing into a parked car and then fleeing on foot. According to the criminal complaint, Keaton Koch failed to stop for an alleged traffic violation near the intersection of North Spring and Main streets in Beaver Dam. That allegedly sparked a chase and Koch lost control of his minivan while going around the curve near the Kraft Foods plant and struck an unoccupied parked car on the 600 block of South Center. The 23-year-old reportedly ran from the accident scene was apprehended after one block. There was no one inside the parked car. Koch is being held on a $20,000 cash bond. An arraignment hearing is scheduled for later this month.

Correctional Officer Bound Over On Assault Charge

10/1/10 - A guard at the Dodge Correctional Institution in Waupun will proceed to trial on charges that he assaulted an inmate. Driftten Kitzman is facing a felony count of Abuse of Residents of Penal Facilities for an incident in July. According to the criminal complaint, another guard punched the inmate in the mouth and Kitzman intervened as the two struggled. The 41-year-old correctional officer allegedly threw the inmate on the ground face first, kneeled on his head and punched him in the ribs while saying, “Stop resisting.” He told investigators he was using tactics intended to gain compliance. If convicted, Kitzman could spend up to three-and-a-half years in prison. An arraignment hearing is set for next month.

Ammo Plant Contamination Debate Continues

10/1/10 - The Army says it will ask state-and-local governments to approve a public water system near the old Badger Army Ammunition Plant near Baraboo. Spokeswoman Joan Kenney says a common water supply is the best way to make sure people living near the plant have clean water. They now use their own wells – and they fear that groundwater contamination near the plant will eventually pollute their own wells and harm their families. The boundaries of the new water system must still be determined, and the exact cost is not known. Kenney says 20-million-dollars would not be out of the question, but she says it would provide peace-of-mind for up to 300 homes near the plant. The Army expects to make formal requests this fall to the state D-N-R and the towns of Merrimac, Prairie du Sac, and Sumpter. Kenney says the new system could be installed within three years if all the governments approve it. The Badger plant made ammunition during the Vietnam war, and it’s been closed since the 1970’s. Laura Olah of a citizens’ group says they’ll support a public water system if the residents want it. But she says an environmenttal clean-up of the site remains the top concern.

Victims Right Board Clarifies Kratz Decision

10/1/10 - The state Crime Victims’ Rights Board said Ken Kratz was not candid with the panel when he described racy text messages he sent to a domestic abuse victim. But the panel said it did not have the power to punish the Calumet County D-A because of it. Kratz was stepping down as the board’s chairman last December when he said his 30 texts were mutually friendly. But Stephanie Van Groll took those messages to Kaukauna Police because Kratz was pushing for a relationship, and called her “young and hot.” Kratz resigned from the board after being told to do so by the state Justice Department. That agency investigated the text messages. And while it said no crime was committed, the Justice Department told Kratz to resign from the Crime Victims’ Rights Board and report his behavior to the state’s Office of Lawyer Regulation. The victims’ rights panel was criticized for not punishing Kratz. But in a statement yesterday, the panel said it never received a complaint about its former chairman – and it does not have the authority to consider sexual harassment cases. The text messages were made public a couple weeks ago, and Kratz first said he would not resign as Calumet County’s chief prosecutor. But he changed his mind after the governor started procedures to remove him. His attorney now says Kratz will resign before October eighth – when a public hearing is scheduled on the removal request.

Kleefisch Comments on Cancer

10/1/10 - Republican lieutenant governor candidate Rebecca Kleefisch of Oconomowoc says she could have waited until after the November election to disclose the cancerous colon tumor she had removed. But she thought it was important that people should know about it. In a letter sent out yesterday, Kleefisch said she began to feel sick in April with cramping, headaches, and an upset stomach – and her husband told her to take it seriously, because his father had died from pancreatic cancer. In August, she saw a doctor for a third time and some problems cropped up. A colonoscopy confirmed she had a cancerous tumor in her colon, which she said was the size of a grapefruit. Kleefisch says she feels no complications – she does not need chemotherapy – and she’s cancer-free. Kleefisch easily won a five-way Republican primary for lieutenant governor on September 14th. She’s running together with G-O-P gubernatorial candidate Scott Walker. The Democratic candidate for governor, Tom Barrett, said in a statement that he wishes Kleefisch a fast and complete recovery.

Hassett Law License Stands

10/1/10 - A state board says it’s okay for attorney general candidate Scott Hassett to practice law, even though he does not have enough credit hours. Hassett allowed his law license to lapse into an inactive status. But it was restored in the middle of last year, after Hassett took 30 hours of continuing legal education. However, a rule was changed two months before that, requiring 60 hours of legal education instead of 30. But the State Board of Bar Examiners said Hassett and six other lawyers got inaccurate information from the board’s staff about the number of class hours they would need. So the board reinstated Hassett and other attorneys with only 30 hours. Hassett was Governor Jim Doyle’s first D-N-R secretary a few years ago. He’s running as a Democrat against state Attorney General J-B Van Hollen this fall.

State Offices Closed On Columbus Day

10/1/10 - State government used to be open on Columbus Day. But this year, most state agencies will be closed on Monday October 11th, so employees can take one of their required furlough days. Governor Jim Doyle made all state personnel take eight unpaid days off in each of the last two years, to help the state make up for a massive revenue shortfall. The motor vehicle division, D-N-R service centers, and the vital records office will be among those closed on Columbus Day. The Government Accountability Board will stay open as it deals with the upcoming November elections. Several other offices and state facilities will also remain open October 11th, including the Old World Wisconsin historical site.

Packers Study Details Economic Impact

10/1/10 - Like ‘em or not, the Green Bay Packers are a giant plus to Wisconsin’s economy – and they’re about to get even bigger. A new study shows that the Packers added almost 282-million-dollars to Brown County’s economy in 2009. And that was while the recession was in high gear. The figure includes the Packers’ operations, plus other spending by visitors that would not have happened had the team not been there. The report said the Packers are responsible for 25-hundred-60 employees in the area, who made about 125-million-dollars in wages. The Packer stadium district commissioned the report, as a springboard to the team’s future growth. The Packers have bought 28 acres around Lambeau Field – and they’re in the early stages of considering a variety of new development to generate revenue that would not have to be shared with the N-F-L’s other teams. Packers’ president Mark Murphy says they don’t have a timetable for deciding or acting on the new development. The study also considered what would happen if Lambeau Field added 10-thousand seats – and it said it would generate another one-point-seven-million dollars to the local economy for each game. The stadium now generates over 12-million in economic activity per game.