Top Stories, August 7th

State Fair Crowds Peaceful, Smaller

8/7/11 - The crowds were said to be peaceful, but smaller, this weekend at the Wisconsin State Fair following open night violence that resulted in about a dozen injuries and over 30 arrests. The trouble began around 7pm on Thursday in the midway as fights erupted among African American youths. Witnesses say by the 11pm closing time, mobs of black youths attacked white people as they left the fair, punching and kicking people and shaking and pounding their vehicles. New rules were implemented prohibiting all people under 18 from entering the fairgrounds after 5pm unless they’re accompanied by a parent or a legal guardian over the age of 21. State Fair Police Chief Tom Struebing says his entire police staff of 80 was on the job yesterday (Saturday). In addition, Governor Scott Walker ordered the State Police to help keep order while Milwaukee Police Chief Edward Flynn promised additional police protection at the fair and other weekend activities in the city. The fair's Communication Manager Patrice Harris says people did not seem to mind the additional security measures and were thanking officials for the enhanced policies. She says attendance numbers are released after the fair ends, so day-to-day comparisons are not yet available.

Immigration Advocates Question Recent Sweep

8/7/11 - Immigrant rights advocates are questioning the claims of federal immigration enforcement officials after the arrest of 30 undocumented immigrants in Milwaukee late last month. The two-day sweep in Milwaukee was carried out by the Department of Homeland Security Investigation Agency with the support of Immigration Customs Enforcement (ICE). The arrests are part of what is called an enforcement and removal operation. This one netted 30 individuals all of whom officials claim are connected in some way to one of several Latino street gangs. But only six of them had outstanding criminal charges involving drugs or violence. Nancy Flores of the group Voces de la Frontera says she's done background checks on 22 of those arrested and found no record of drug or gang offenses. She says relatives of 19 of them have come to the Voces de la Frontera office trying to find their son, father or brother. Flores says her group tries to refer family members to attorneys who can track the deportation cases and at least try to arrange for them to visit their relatives all most all of whom are now being held in the Dodge County jail.

Highway Deaths Lower So Far That in 2010

8/7/11 - Fewer people have died on Wisconsin roads this year than last. The state D-O-T says 286 people were killed in state highway crashes from January-through-July. That’s 16 less than a year ago, and 62 less than the average for the past five years. In July, 55 people were killed on Wisconsin highways. That’s the fourth-lowest since World War Two, even though it was four more than a year ago. The D-O-T’s Randy Romanski says drivers need to be extra-cautious this month. August is one of the deadliest months on Wisconsin roads, and Romanski says it’s due to more speeders and drunk drivers. The state will take part in a national O-W-I crackdown called “Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over.” It runs from August 19th through Labor Day.

Drug Ringleaders Scheduled To Appear In Court

8/7/11 - The two alleged ring-leaders of a giant crack cocaine and heroin business in the Fox Valley are scheduled to appear in court in the next week-or-so. 28-year-old Lorenzo Curry will make his first court appearance Monday in Oshkosh on a charge of conspiracy to deliver cocaine. 26-year-old Lord Wilson is due back in Winnebago County Circuit Court a week from Monday, when a judge will decide if there’s enough evidence to order a trial. Forty-eight people were charged last month as part of the drug ring. Authorities said it sold three-point-six million dollars of heroin and 900-thousand dollars worth of crack in eastern Wisconsin. Curry was arrested at the Stanley Prison, where’s serving time for a battery conviction. Officials said 21 of the suspects were tied to illegal drug operations in the Chicago area, and the rest were independent contractors. Two other defendants had preliminary hearings in Oshkosh late last week and both were ordered to stand trial.

Economics Professor Calls Job Creation ‘Remarkable’

8/7/11 - An economics professor at U-W Milwaukee says it’s remarkable that the nation created 154-thousand new private-sector jobs last month. Avik Chakrabarti called it a healthy indicator, considering all the stress the U-S economy has been under. He cited high oil prices, trouble by Congress in addressing the nation’s debt, Europe’s debt crisis, and a slowdown of Japan’s economy. The U-S unemployment rate now stands at 9.1%, down one-tenth of a point from June. But only 58-percent of all Americans were working last month, the lowest ratio since early 1983. The seasonally-adjusted jobless rate for Wisconsin in June was up two-tenths to 7.6%. Only eight of the state’s 72 counties had lower rates or no change over the reporting period. Of the remaining counties, 55 had increases of less than a percentage point. Compared to last year, rates were lower in 49 counties and unchanged in three. In Dodge County, the unemployment rate stands at 8.4% which is higher than the 7.7% reported the previous month but four-tenths lower than last year at the same time.

Health Insurance Continues To Outpace Inflation

8/7/11 - Health insurance premiums rose by an average of 8-to-10 percent this year for both employers and their workers in southeast Wisconsin. That’s according to an annual survey from H-C Trends. The increase was smaller than last year’s hike of 11-to-13 percent – and that was way above the overall inflation rate of one-point-six percent. Health insurance broker John Rauser says the industry is not close to solving the massive cost increases. The survey showed that a family-of-four who gets insurance from an employer will pay just over eight-thousand dollars this year for premiums and out-of-pocket costs like co-pays and deductibles. Also, the squeeze continues for small businesses. According to the H-C Trends survey, seven-percent of small firms in southeast Wisconsin spent more than 25-thousand-dollars per employee for family coverage last year. Over 200 employers answered the survey. Those companies have a total of 140-thousand employees.

Young-Star Rating System In Place

8/7/11 - About 40-percent of Wisconsin’s child care centers are taking part in a new state government rating system. The Young-Star Web site went online earlier this year. And officials are now encouraging parents to get a look. Providers are rated on a five-star system for the quality of their teaching, learning environment, the youngsters’ well-being, and business practices. Former Governor Jim Doyle tried to get all providers on the system – and to tie their state aid to how well they perform. But now, the only ones required to be rated are those who accept state funding from the Wisconsin Shares program to serve poor youngsters age-five-and-under. About 15-hundred providers are rated. The site is located at Youngstar-Dot-WI-Dot-Gov.

Madonna Shrine Discovered In Sun Prairie

8/7/11 - Part of an old Catholic Madonna shrine was recently found at the site of a new grocery store and auto service center that’s being built in Sun Prairie. Crews discovered the long-neglected white shrine as they were clearing trees and doing landscaping for a new Woodman’s Food Market. The bathtub was framed in old, peeling bricks. A statue of the Virgin Mary used to stand inside the tub. But Peter Klein of the Sun Prairie Historical Library said the family that used to own the land removed the statue, probably in the 1970’s. Klein told the Wisconsin State Journal he knew the shrine was there, but he didn’t realize it had still survived. It’s on Woodman’s property. The company says it will most likely remove it. As of yesterday, it can no longer be seen along the nearby street. Lisa Stone of Spring Lake has written a book about the artifacts. She tells the paper that bathtub shrines were popular in the 1950’s, as people ended years of being frugal during World War Two.