BDUSD State Aid Bucks Trend
10/17/09 - Many Wisconsin school districts officially got the bad news many were expecting Thursday. The state released the final school aid figures – and most districts are getting less than a year ago. However, that is not the case in Beaver Dam where the district is actually going to get about $520,000 more than a year ago. Business Services Director Andrew Sarnow says the district will receive close to 20.9-million-dollars in state aid, which is more than he was expecting. With the final numbers in Sarnow says they can now plug in a tax rate of $8.73 per $1,000 of assessed value, a 3.8-percent increase over a year ago. Not too many other districts were that lucky. During the summer it was estimated that one-of-every-five school systems would get 15-percent less, the maximum allowed by law. West Bend lost one-point-six million dollars in state aid, and they’re looking at cutting athletic programs starting next fall. Other districts are considering more program cuts, new property tax increases, or both. The state reduced its school aid by 147-million dollars this year, to make up for a drop in state revenues. But lawmakers did add 70-million dollars to a state credit that reduces local property tax bills. Those credits are especially targeted to communities with higher tax burdens.
Edwards Enters “Not Guilty” Plea
10/17/09 - Edward Edwards pleaded innocent yesterday to killing a pair of high school sweethearts in Jefferson County nearly three decades ago. The 76-year-old Edwards appeared for his arraignment via tele-conference. After his last court appearance in August, he was taken to an undisclosed facility due to his health problems. At that hearing, he sat in a wheelchair and breathed through an oxygen tube. Edwards is charged with two counts of first-degree murder. His next court date is October 28th, and a trial has tentatively been set for January 11th. Edwards was arrested in July in a cold-case investigation. State Justice agents say they found his D-N-A on the remains of 19-year-old Kelly Drew. She and 19-year-old Tim Hack were killed after they left a wedding reception at a hall near Sullivan in August of 1980. Edwards claimed he had sex with Drew that night, but other men actually killed the pair.
Contreras Gets Plea Deal in Molestations
10/17/09 - A Beaver Dam man who molested two young girls has entered into a plea agreement with prosecutors. Robert Contreras pleaded to amended charges of felony Third Degree Sexual Assault and had three other felony counts and two misdemeanors dismissed but read into the record. The 37-year-old raped a preteen girl in March of 2008 and a teenage girl on several occasions beginning in May of 2006. The assaults stopped when Contreras was sent to prison in March of last year for his fifth OWI offense. A presentencing investigation was ordered and a hearing is scheduled for November 23.
Teenage Milwaukee Murder Suspect Evaluation Ordered
10/17/09 - Defense attorneys for 14 year old Labrina Brown have a talked a Milwaukee County judge into approving tests on their client's brain. Brown will have a neurological psychological evaluation. She's the teenager accused of killing her step-grandfather when he poured her milk down a drain. Prosecution are charging her with first-degree intentional homicide, meaning a conviction could send her to prison for the rest of her life. She's accused of stabbing 48 year old Robert Moon to death last August. She returns to a Milwaukee County courtroom in December.
Superior Priest Suspended With Pay
10/17/09 -A Roman Catholic priest in the Superior Diocese has been suspended with pay. The Reverend Henry Willenborg fathered a child when he lived in Illinois. Now, it's been revealed he may have been involved with a minor in a separate relationship. The Survivors Network of those abused by Priests called for the suspension after a story appeared in the New York Times. Willenborg lives in Ashland. The church says he will step down from active ministry until the information in the newspaper article is clarified. The group is asking the church to offer additional help to the mother and her son. The son has terminal cancer. He's 22. A second woman told the paper she had been involved with Willenborg when she was a student in high school.
OWI Issued in Town of Chester Rollover
10/17/09 - A Madison man was arrested for his second OWI last night after a rollover accident on Highway 151 in the Town of Chester. The Wisconsin State Patrol is investigating the two car accident that occurred around 6:20pm. Authorities haven’t released many details, but 23-year-old Jeffrey Mondloch was taken to jail for Operating While Intoxicated, second offense. A 55-year-old Iowa woman sustained minor injuries and was transported to the Beaver Dam Community Hospital by Beaver Dam EMS. The investigation continues.
Highway 151 Back Open
10/17/09 - Highway 151 through Beaver Dam opened back up to traffic yesterday, a couple hours earlier than anticipated. DOT Regional Communications Manager Michael Bie says the weeklong closure was necessary to allow Wisconsin Southern Railroad to reconstruct the rail crossing over the highway. It had been scheduled to reopen at 4pm yesterday afternoon but Bie says they finished a couple hours ahead of schedule.
Veterans Affairs Extends Agent Orange Benefits
10/17/09 - The Department of Veterans Affairs is extending its "Agent Orange" benefits to Vietnam Veterans who are suffering from three specific illnesses associated with the herbicide. Vietnam War Veterans who suffer from Parkinson's disease, B cell leukemias, and ischemic heart disease are eligible for the benefits. Fond du Lac County Veterans Service Officer John Wertschnig says because those illnesses are considered "presumptive" veterans don't have to show an association to their service in Southeast Asia. He says Vietnam Veterans who served on the ground would be eligible for the benefits. He says unfortunately the benefits aren't retroactive. The VA only pays from the date you file the claim. Veterans can find out more through a VA website at www.publichealth.va.gov/exposures/agentorange.
State Supreme Court Rift Emerges
10/17/09 - It's rare for justices on the State Supreme Court to argue in public, but it seems to be happening now in Wisconsin. Defense attorneys have requested that Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice Michael Gableman be excluded from hearing oral arguments in a case. They say comments made by Gableman indicate a bias against criminal defendants. Three justices issued a statement last week saying those arguments should be delayed because of the challenge. Yesterday, three more justices issued a joint statement calling the first one "unprecedented." Friday's statement also said the public deserves more rapid action on the Gableman request. It was submitted six months ago.
Milwaukee Officials Revive Gun Debate
10/17/09 - A proposal by Milwaukee’s police chief and district attorney has reloaded the debate on carrying concealed guns in Wisconsin. Police Chief Ed Flynn and the DA John Chisholm told a Common Council panel they’d support concealed carry as compromise for tougher gun control laws. Currently carrying a concealed firearm is a misdemeanor, but they’ve proposed making it a mandatory felony for anyone who carries without a permit. Jim Fendry is Director of the Wisconsin Pro-Gun Movement. He supports a change in law allowing concealed carry but would only favor felonies for those unlicensed carriers if they use their weapon to commit a crime. The director of the Wisconsin Anti-Violence Effort Educational Fund, Jeri Bonavia, says Wisconsinites are not in support of the conceal carry -- as a Public Policy Forum poll a few years ago indicated more than 70 percent were opposed.
Bank Deposits Up
10/17/09 - Bank deposits in Wisconsin went up by nine-and-a-half percent during the year ending June 30th. The F-D-I-C says that Wisconsinites put 126-billion-dollars in their bank accounts during the past year – up from 115-billion the previous year. And Wisconsin’s increase in deposits was almost two-percent higher than the national jump of seven-point-six percent. But some experts said the report is not as rosy as it sounds – because many investors left a rapidly-falling stock market, and found their banks to much safer. According to the F-D-I-C, almost 19-percent of Wisconsin deposits went to M-and-I banks around the state. That’s down about a quarter-percent from the year before, but M-and-I still had the larger share by far. U-S Bank was second, getting 12-percent of all state deposits.
DC Directs Nut Funding To Wisconsin
10/17/09 - Washington has directed 33 thousand dollars to the Badger State to commercialize bush hazelnuts. That's just one part of a federal grant to specialty growers aimed at making their crops more competitive. The USDA is sending a total of three quarters of a million dollars to Wisconsin. It will be distributed through the state agriculture department. Crops to be helped include vegetables, fruits, tree nuts and nursery crops like flowers. A Friday press release indicates the aim of the program is to help Wisconsin residents eat better, make crop distribution more efficient and enhance food safety.
Warm Winter Possible
10/17/09 - The National Weather Service says it will be a little bit warmer-than-normal in Wisconsin this winter. Forecasters say they have a “high degree of confidence” that an El Nino will keep the water in the Pacific Ocean warmer – and that means slightly warmer temperatures should roll into the Upper Midwest. Meteorologists say the region will still have cold nights of zero-and-below – but there won’t be as many extremely cold nights down to minus-20.
10/17/09 - Many Wisconsin school districts officially got the bad news many were expecting Thursday. The state released the final school aid figures – and most districts are getting less than a year ago. However, that is not the case in Beaver Dam where the district is actually going to get about $520,000 more than a year ago. Business Services Director Andrew Sarnow says the district will receive close to 20.9-million-dollars in state aid, which is more than he was expecting. With the final numbers in Sarnow says they can now plug in a tax rate of $8.73 per $1,000 of assessed value, a 3.8-percent increase over a year ago. Not too many other districts were that lucky. During the summer it was estimated that one-of-every-five school systems would get 15-percent less, the maximum allowed by law. West Bend lost one-point-six million dollars in state aid, and they’re looking at cutting athletic programs starting next fall. Other districts are considering more program cuts, new property tax increases, or both. The state reduced its school aid by 147-million dollars this year, to make up for a drop in state revenues. But lawmakers did add 70-million dollars to a state credit that reduces local property tax bills. Those credits are especially targeted to communities with higher tax burdens.
Edwards Enters “Not Guilty” Plea
10/17/09 - Edward Edwards pleaded innocent yesterday to killing a pair of high school sweethearts in Jefferson County nearly three decades ago. The 76-year-old Edwards appeared for his arraignment via tele-conference. After his last court appearance in August, he was taken to an undisclosed facility due to his health problems. At that hearing, he sat in a wheelchair and breathed through an oxygen tube. Edwards is charged with two counts of first-degree murder. His next court date is October 28th, and a trial has tentatively been set for January 11th. Edwards was arrested in July in a cold-case investigation. State Justice agents say they found his D-N-A on the remains of 19-year-old Kelly Drew. She and 19-year-old Tim Hack were killed after they left a wedding reception at a hall near Sullivan in August of 1980. Edwards claimed he had sex with Drew that night, but other men actually killed the pair.
Contreras Gets Plea Deal in Molestations
10/17/09 - A Beaver Dam man who molested two young girls has entered into a plea agreement with prosecutors. Robert Contreras pleaded to amended charges of felony Third Degree Sexual Assault and had three other felony counts and two misdemeanors dismissed but read into the record. The 37-year-old raped a preteen girl in March of 2008 and a teenage girl on several occasions beginning in May of 2006. The assaults stopped when Contreras was sent to prison in March of last year for his fifth OWI offense. A presentencing investigation was ordered and a hearing is scheduled for November 23.
Teenage Milwaukee Murder Suspect Evaluation Ordered
10/17/09 - Defense attorneys for 14 year old Labrina Brown have a talked a Milwaukee County judge into approving tests on their client's brain. Brown will have a neurological psychological evaluation. She's the teenager accused of killing her step-grandfather when he poured her milk down a drain. Prosecution are charging her with first-degree intentional homicide, meaning a conviction could send her to prison for the rest of her life. She's accused of stabbing 48 year old Robert Moon to death last August. She returns to a Milwaukee County courtroom in December.
Superior Priest Suspended With Pay
10/17/09 -A Roman Catholic priest in the Superior Diocese has been suspended with pay. The Reverend Henry Willenborg fathered a child when he lived in Illinois. Now, it's been revealed he may have been involved with a minor in a separate relationship. The Survivors Network of those abused by Priests called for the suspension after a story appeared in the New York Times. Willenborg lives in Ashland. The church says he will step down from active ministry until the information in the newspaper article is clarified. The group is asking the church to offer additional help to the mother and her son. The son has terminal cancer. He's 22. A second woman told the paper she had been involved with Willenborg when she was a student in high school.
OWI Issued in Town of Chester Rollover
10/17/09 - A Madison man was arrested for his second OWI last night after a rollover accident on Highway 151 in the Town of Chester. The Wisconsin State Patrol is investigating the two car accident that occurred around 6:20pm. Authorities haven’t released many details, but 23-year-old Jeffrey Mondloch was taken to jail for Operating While Intoxicated, second offense. A 55-year-old Iowa woman sustained minor injuries and was transported to the Beaver Dam Community Hospital by Beaver Dam EMS. The investigation continues.
Highway 151 Back Open
10/17/09 - Highway 151 through Beaver Dam opened back up to traffic yesterday, a couple hours earlier than anticipated. DOT Regional Communications Manager Michael Bie says the weeklong closure was necessary to allow Wisconsin Southern Railroad to reconstruct the rail crossing over the highway. It had been scheduled to reopen at 4pm yesterday afternoon but Bie says they finished a couple hours ahead of schedule.
Veterans Affairs Extends Agent Orange Benefits
10/17/09 - The Department of Veterans Affairs is extending its "Agent Orange" benefits to Vietnam Veterans who are suffering from three specific illnesses associated with the herbicide. Vietnam War Veterans who suffer from Parkinson's disease, B cell leukemias, and ischemic heart disease are eligible for the benefits. Fond du Lac County Veterans Service Officer John Wertschnig says because those illnesses are considered "presumptive" veterans don't have to show an association to their service in Southeast Asia. He says Vietnam Veterans who served on the ground would be eligible for the benefits. He says unfortunately the benefits aren't retroactive. The VA only pays from the date you file the claim. Veterans can find out more through a VA website at www.publichealth.va.gov/exposures/agentorange.
State Supreme Court Rift Emerges
10/17/09 - It's rare for justices on the State Supreme Court to argue in public, but it seems to be happening now in Wisconsin. Defense attorneys have requested that Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice Michael Gableman be excluded from hearing oral arguments in a case. They say comments made by Gableman indicate a bias against criminal defendants. Three justices issued a statement last week saying those arguments should be delayed because of the challenge. Yesterday, three more justices issued a joint statement calling the first one "unprecedented." Friday's statement also said the public deserves more rapid action on the Gableman request. It was submitted six months ago.
Milwaukee Officials Revive Gun Debate
10/17/09 - A proposal by Milwaukee’s police chief and district attorney has reloaded the debate on carrying concealed guns in Wisconsin. Police Chief Ed Flynn and the DA John Chisholm told a Common Council panel they’d support concealed carry as compromise for tougher gun control laws. Currently carrying a concealed firearm is a misdemeanor, but they’ve proposed making it a mandatory felony for anyone who carries without a permit. Jim Fendry is Director of the Wisconsin Pro-Gun Movement. He supports a change in law allowing concealed carry but would only favor felonies for those unlicensed carriers if they use their weapon to commit a crime. The director of the Wisconsin Anti-Violence Effort Educational Fund, Jeri Bonavia, says Wisconsinites are not in support of the conceal carry -- as a Public Policy Forum poll a few years ago indicated more than 70 percent were opposed.
Bank Deposits Up
10/17/09 - Bank deposits in Wisconsin went up by nine-and-a-half percent during the year ending June 30th. The F-D-I-C says that Wisconsinites put 126-billion-dollars in their bank accounts during the past year – up from 115-billion the previous year. And Wisconsin’s increase in deposits was almost two-percent higher than the national jump of seven-point-six percent. But some experts said the report is not as rosy as it sounds – because many investors left a rapidly-falling stock market, and found their banks to much safer. According to the F-D-I-C, almost 19-percent of Wisconsin deposits went to M-and-I banks around the state. That’s down about a quarter-percent from the year before, but M-and-I still had the larger share by far. U-S Bank was second, getting 12-percent of all state deposits.
DC Directs Nut Funding To Wisconsin
10/17/09 - Washington has directed 33 thousand dollars to the Badger State to commercialize bush hazelnuts. That's just one part of a federal grant to specialty growers aimed at making their crops more competitive. The USDA is sending a total of three quarters of a million dollars to Wisconsin. It will be distributed through the state agriculture department. Crops to be helped include vegetables, fruits, tree nuts and nursery crops like flowers. A Friday press release indicates the aim of the program is to help Wisconsin residents eat better, make crop distribution more efficient and enhance food safety.
Warm Winter Possible
10/17/09 - The National Weather Service says it will be a little bit warmer-than-normal in Wisconsin this winter. Forecasters say they have a “high degree of confidence” that an El Nino will keep the water in the Pacific Ocean warmer – and that means slightly warmer temperatures should roll into the Upper Midwest. Meteorologists say the region will still have cold nights of zero-and-below – but there won’t be as many extremely cold nights down to minus-20.
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