Top Stories January 11th

Packers Lose Playoff Opener

1/11/10 - The Green Bay Packers ended their season last night with a wild 51-to-45 overtime loss at Arizona in the first round of the playoffs. Michael Adams knocked the ball away from Aaron Rodgers, who kicked it with his right foot. Karlos Dansby caught it and ran 17 yards for the Cardinals’ winning touchdown. It was the highest-scoring post-season game in N-F-L history with a-thousand-24 yards of total offense and 62 combined first downs, both playoff records. The Packers were down 17-nothing and 31-10 before tying it late in the fourth quarter. The Cards almost won it in regulation, but Neil Rackers missed a 34-yard field goal attempt with nine seconds left. The Packers won the coin flip and the ball to start the overtime. But Rodgers’ fumble – Green Bay’s third turnover of the day – came just 78 seconds into the O-T. Rodgers finished 28-of-42 for a Packer playoff-record 422 yards, four touchdowns, and an interception. Cardinals’ quarterback Kurt Warner completed 29-of-33 passes for 379 yards, five T-D’s, and a passer rating of 154-point-one. Arizona moves on to New Orleans in the second round next Saturday. Green Bay finished at 11-and-6.

Wind Energy Farm Decision Could Be Made Today

1/11/10 - A decision on whether to allow We Energies to build 90 wind energy turbines in the towns of Randolph and Scott could be made today. According to their agenda, the Public Service Commission will discuss and possibly make their decision at their meeting in Madison. The project, which will sit on about 17,000 acres of land, has drawn both criticism and support. Detractors have voiced concerns on a number of topics, including the possible health effects of living near a wind farm. The energy produced by the turbines would be enough to power 45,000 homes, though We Energies does not provide power to anyone in Columbia County. If approved the project is expected to be completed by 2011.

More Soldiers Expected to Land in WI Today

1/11/10 - About 300 more soldiers will return to Wisconsin today, after serving in Iraq. Members of the National Guard’s 128th Infantry unit will land at Volk Field in Juneau County, following a year-long tour of duty. It’s the second wave of returning troops from the Guard’s Red Arrow Brigade. About 115 came home last week, and a total of 32-hundred are due back before the end of the month. They’ll reunite with loved ones at Volk Field, and will then spend the better part of a week getting de-briefed at Fort McCoy before they head home.

Two Appleton Men Missing

1/11/10 - Authorities have been looking for two Appleton men missing since Saturday night. Calumet County authorities said 29-year-old Jay Luniak and 30-year-old Keith Ebben were last seen at the Vinland Still-and-Grill near Neenah on Saturday evening. They were planning to go snowmobiling later that night – but their sled trailer and a truck were spotted at a Kaukauna tavern with no sign of the two men. Yesterday, Winnebago County authorities and Neenah-Menasha rescue divers searched parts of Lake Winnebago at Neenah – and Oshkosh rescuers searched part of the lake near the Fox River. Local hospitals were also checked. Winnebago County sheriff’s sergeant Jeff Gruss said they’ve exhausted their search options – and they had hoped to get more information to check today.

BD PFC Honors Retiring Firefighters

1/11/10 - The Beaver Dam Police and Fire Commission recently honored two retiring firefighters for their combined eight decades of service to the department. Beaver Dam Fire Chief Alan Mannel presented Dan Kenevan and Vic Herbst with a certificate of appreciation acknowledging their service to the department. Kenevan was the Captain of the Paid-On-Call firefighters and had served as the department’s Safety Officer since 1993. Kenevan says firefighting is a hazardous job and he’s proud to say that no firefighter lost their lives in his time as Safety Officer. Herbst was named the department’s Assistant Chief in 1990. Herbst says the only regret he’s got is that he didn’t join sooner.

Campaign Reform Laws Could Be Scaled Back

1/11/10 - The U-S Supreme Court will rule as early as tomorrow on a case that could scale back the federal campaign reform law written by Wisconsin’s Russ Feingold. The justices will decide whether the Federal Election Commission was wrong in labeling a 2008 movie that criticized Democrat Hillary Clinton as a campaign ad. The conservative Citizens United produced the film, and was planning to show it on digital cable systems before the F-E-C struck it down. Observers say the Supreme Court could use the case to set a whole new set of rules for campaign ads.

Aerators on Fox Lake

1/11/10 - Aerators are out on Fox Lake near Maple Point. The area has been cordoned off with yellow rope and orange posts every 25 to 30ft. Aeration units are used when oxygen drops to a level that would be dangerous to the health of the lake. The machine circulates water in such a way that it thins the ice for as much as a mile around. In Beaver Dam, Doug Sackett with the Lake Improvement Association says they are closely monitoring oxygen levels throughout the lake, but there is no need for aerators at this time. There are lower oxygen levels in the middle of Beaver Dam Lake but the North and South ends are said to be doing very well.

Local Legislator Questions Domestic Violence Related Bill

1/11/10 - A Wisconsin Senate committee has endorsed tougher penalties for those who violate domestic violence restraining orders. It's against the law for anyone arrested for domestic violence to contact their alleged victims within 72 hours after an arrest. And the new bill would make such contact a felony. But Republican Glenn Grothman of West Bend calls many of those visits harmless, and he says the bill could saddle people with criminal records before they're convicted of assaulting their partners. Grothman says a victim might even call an assailant to ask him-or-her to come home because quote, "their kids are crying." And Grothman says contacts like that should not be criminal. He says the bill should be delayed until a study can determine how many people would be affected. But Milwaukee Democrat Lena Taylor says there's already strong evidence that a higher penalty would save lives. She says people die in situations where an alleged domestic abuser contacts a victim soon after an arrest. Still, Taylor agreed to get more information from a state panel on criminal penalties before a final vote on the measure.