Top Stories October 25th

Columbia County Working To ID Body

10/25/09 - The Columbia County Sheriffs Department is working to identify a body found in the southwestern portion of the county Saturday afternoon. According to Sheriff Dennis Richards, deputies responded to a 9-1-1 call in the Summerville Park Road area around 3:30pm where a deceased male with no identification was located. Richards says he is described as a white male in his 30s, five feet ten inches tall, 150lbs with blue eyes and brown hair just below the ears. The man was wearing “Tony Hawk” brand blue jeans, a blue sweatshirt, black leather jacket, black work boots, black knit hat, and grey knit gloves with the fingers cut out. Richards says it’s believed to be an isolated incident and there is no perceived threat to the neighborhood. The incident remains under investigation.

Search Continues for Missing Milwaukee Man

10/25/09 - Searchers say a life jacket and a pill bottle with a missing Milwaukee man's name on it have washed ashore on Lake Superior. Douglas Winter is a 48 year old teacher with Milwaukee Public Schools who has been missing since last week. The life jacket and pill bottle were found near Split Rock Lighthouse, located near Two Harbors, Minnesota. Winter had been kayaking in the area last Monday and his kayak was found the next day. Friends say Winter is an experienced kayaker. He was last heard from Monday night when he called a friend and told her he was about two to three miles from shore and the waves were getting fairly large. The Lake County, Minnesota, sheriff's office says there is no reason to suspect suicide -- or foul play, at this point.

BDFD Joins MABAS

10/25/09 - The Beaver Dam Fire Department is enlisting in a far-reaching mutual aid program that the city’s fire chief says will enhance public safety at little to no cost. The Beaver Dam Common Council this past week approved a resolution that allows the department to enlist in the Mutual Aid Box Alarm System program. Chief Alan Mannel says MABAS will coordinate emergency responders, EMT’s, HazMat officials, technical rescue personnel and even general staff from across the Midwest under one umbrella program. Mannel says MABAS will replace the informal mutual aid agreements that local municipalities already have in place, eliminating multiple calls to various agencies during an emergency. All calls will instead be routed through Dodge County central dispatch. Mannel says his former department was part of the MABAS program in northern Illinois, and while it is effective in small-scale local emergencies, he says it can be invaluable during large-scale catastrophic events. With Hurricane Katrina, a couple firefighters from hundreds of departments – including Mannel’s former fire station –assembled in a large contingent so as not to strip any one department. Mannel says the costs of the program will be limited to paperwork.

Chase Suspect Just Released From Jail

10/25/09 - A suspect, accused of dragging a police officer, had just gotten out of jail when he found himself being chased. The West Allis man was arrested Thursday. The chase started on Milwaukee's north side when officers think their suspect was involved in a drug deal. For 25 minutes the chase crossed several city limit boundaries, finally ending when the suspect's car hit stop sticks. The officer who was dragged suffered minor bumps and bruises. Investigators say the suspect has a long history of drug abuse -- and that's what he had been jailed for before the incident.

Legislators Consider Breeder Legislation

10/25/09 - Dog breeders who sell more than 25 dogs a year would have to get a license to run their business in Wisconsin. The state Assembly is set to vote on a new law Tuesday. Half of the 50 states have such a law in place right now. Supporters of the bill say our lack of regulations makes this state a magnet for big puppy mills where animals are often mistreated. The puppy mill legislation has bipartisan support, with 71 of the 132 state lawmakers signed on as co-sponsors.

Doyle Won’t Raise Glass For Beer Tax

10/25/09 - Governor Doyle makes it perfectly clear, again, where he stands on the beer tax -- and that is with the status quo. Doyle says the state beer tax would have to be increased substantially to make a significant difference in the state’s finances and he’s not in favor of that. A bill from state Representative Terese Berceau, recently was the subject of a standing room only public hearing at the Capitol. Doyle remains unconvinced. He says it’s no coincidence the two states with the lowest beer tax are Missouri and Wisconsin. Brewing is a major industry in both.

Brush Pick Up Suspended After Next Week

10/25/09 - The Beaver Dam Department of Public Works Department says brush and shrubbery pick-up will be suspended for the season after the first week of November. Director of Facilities David Stoiser says residents need to have shrubbery cuttings and neatly piled loose tree limbs up to seven inches in thickness and eight feet in length in the terrace area at the street’s edge for pick-up by 7am during their first solid waste collection day of the month. Waste cannot be placed out any sooner than 24 hours before the scheduled collection day. Yard materials can also be dropped off at the Public Works Garage Yard Waste Drop-off Site at 640 South Center Street, Monday through Friday from 7am to 3:30pm. The service will start up again next April.

Bulk Pick-Up Is Next Week

10/25/09 - Bulk garbage pick-up for Beaver Dam residents begins one week from Monday. Director of Facilities David Stoiser has announced that bulk pick-up will begin Monday, November 2 and continue through Friday, November 6. Stoiser says the collection regulations are the same as in the past. Bulk waste can be placed on the curb no sooner than 24 hours prior to each collection and by 7am on the day of pick-up. Bulk waste is defined as, but no limited to, furniture, wooden doors and windows and rolled carpet, not exceeding 4’ to 6’ in length. No metal items like bed springs, doors, windows and pipes will be collected. No bundled or loose piles of building materials will be collected. Building materials like lumber must be broken down and placed in the weekly collection cart. The next bulk pick-up will be the first waste collection day of May, 2010.

Hannah Montana Big Halloween Costume

10/25/09 - Expect to see Hannah Montana asking for treats at your front door this Halloween. Costumes featuring the Disney star, Bumblebee Transformers and Dora the Explorer are the big sellers across the Badger State this year, according to the price comparison website sortprice-dot-com. Adult men in Wisconsin are buying Michael Jackson, vampire and Batman costumes. Women are going for sexy nurse and sexy barmaid outfits. The rankings are said to be based on Internet searches from Wisconsin-based computers -- not necessarily purchases.