Man Killed in Train v Minivan Crash
2/18/10 - A 47-year-old Kewaskum man was killed around 7pm last night after his minivan apparently stopped on the railroad tracks on Highway 33 in Allenton and was hit by a southbound freight train. Several witnesses at the scene say that both stop arms were down and all the warning lights were activated. Two other eastbound vehicles were stopped in front of the minivan at the crossing, but just before the train entered the intersection, the minivan drove around them, as well as the stop arm, and stopped on the tracks. The vehicle was immediately struck by the Canadian National Train. Allenton Fire and Rescue managed to cut the man from his vehicle but he was pronounced dead by the Washington County Medical Examiner soon after. Authorities say their investigation continues but they don’t believe alcohol was a factor. The 77-car train received minor damage as a result of the accident but was able to continue on after the vehicle was removed. The name of the minivan driver is being withheld pending notification of family.
Gonzalez Concedes
2/18/10 - La Crosse County Circuit Judge Ramona Gonzalez conceded yesterday, amid conflicting reports about who won the Fourth District Appeals Court primary. The state’s Government Accountability Board did an un-official tally – and it found that Gonzalez lost by just 182 votes to Richland County Circuit Judge Edward Leineweber for the second spot on the April ballot. Dane County D-A Brian Blanchard easily won the first spot with 28-thousand-157 votes. Leineweber advanced with 12-thousand-964, and Gonzalez took third with 12-thousand-782. Earlier yesterday, some media outlets – including the Wheeler News state wire – had Gonzalez in second. She ended up third in 15 of the 24 counties in the appellate court district. Gonzalez said she would not ask for a recount, saying the taxpayers have spent enough on the election. State officials say the results will not be official until the municipalities and counties certify them. They have until next Tuesday to report their final numbers to Madison. Dodge, Columbia, and Jefferson Counties are a part of the 4th Appellate Court District.
Fox Lake Waiting on DOJ Response
2/18/10 - Fox Lake officials are still waiting on a response from the state justice department after they voted down a plan to build an equalization basin earlier this month. The project would have satisfied a court ordered upgrade to their wastewater treatment system but pressure from residents about the cost of the project led to the council voting it down. Last night council president Tom Bednarek says he recently spoke with the DNR in an effort to set up a meeting with the justice department to present a new plan to satisfy the order. That plan consists of, among other things, having private citizens replace their sewer laterals, and putting in more efficient eaves troughs and down spouts.
FDL Embezzlement Case Raising Questions in another Case
2/18/10 - The investigation into alleged embezzlement by three employees of Fond du Lac’s Management Information Systems Department has raised questions about their role in the Ben Mercer case. In the fall of 2007 a jury found the former City Human Resources Director guilty of 14 counts of possession of child pornography. MIS workers were whistleblowers in that case. However during the trial former City Manager Tom Ahrens testified that there were some conflicts between Mercer and the MIS. Fond du Lac Assistant Police Chief Kevin Lemke, the initial investigator in the Mercer case, says the evidence he received from MIS workers and presented to state investigators hasn’t been compromised.
Farms Weather the Recession
2/18/10 - Wisconsin farms made it through the brunt of the recession in 2009 – but many had lower sales due to lower milk prices. The U-S-D-A said the number of Wisconsin farms remained steady last year, at about 78-thousand. And their average size of 195 acres stayed about the same, too. But only 38-hundred farms had more than a half-million-dollars in sales – 200 fewer than the previous year. The number of farms with sales of a quarter-million to a half-million-dollars rose by 300, to 55-hundred. About 94-hundred farms had sales of 100-thousand to a quarter-million – 100 more than in 2008. More than 20-thousand farms had sales of 10-to-99-thousand dollars.
Church Burglar Sentenced
2/18/10 - A former Beaver Dam man will spend five years in prison for breaking into a church. In September, Trevor Waller pleaded “no contest” to a felony Burglary charge related to a break-in at the First Lutheran Church of Beaver Dam in October of 2008. In exchange, the 28-year-old had a misdemeanor charge of Criminal Damage to Property, and two other felony Burglary charges dismissed but read into the record. Authorities heard about the First Lutheran burglary while they were one block down the street at the United Methodist Church investigating a similar break-in. Authorities found blood and fingerprint evidence at First Lutheran and connected it to Waller, who was also charged, along with two others, with break-ins at Kelm Painting and Beaver Plumbing around the same time. Kurtis Billings was previously sentenced two years in prison and four years of extended supervision. Tabatha Pellett, a Stoughton woman who was with the pair during some of the burglaries, pled to reduced charges in July and was placed on probation. At sentencing yesterday, Waller, the purported ringleader, was also ordered to serve five years of extended supervision.
Gonzalez Concedes
2/18/10 - La Crosse County Circuit Judge Ramona Gonzalez conceded yesterday, amid conflicting reports about who won the Fourth District Appeals Court primary. The state’s Government Accountability Board did an un-official tally – and it found that Gonzalez lost by just 182 votes to Richland County Circuit Judge Edward Leineweber for the second spot on the April ballot. Dane County D-A Brian Blanchard easily won the first spot with 28-thousand-157 votes. Leineweber advanced with 12-thousand-964, and Gonzalez took third with 12-thousand-782. Earlier yesterday, some media outlets – including the Wheeler News state wire – had Gonzalez in second. She ended up third in 15 of the 24 counties in the appellate court district. Gonzalez said she would not ask for a recount, saying the taxpayers have spent enough on the election. State officials say the results will not be official until the municipalities and counties certify them. They have until next Tuesday to report their final numbers to Madison. Dodge, Columbia, and Jefferson Counties are a part of the 4th Appellate Court District.
Fox Lake Waiting on DOJ Response
2/18/10 - Fox Lake officials are still waiting on a response from the state justice department after they voted down a plan to build an equalization basin earlier this month. The project would have satisfied a court ordered upgrade to their wastewater treatment system but pressure from residents about the cost of the project led to the council voting it down. Last night council president Tom Bednarek says he recently spoke with the DNR in an effort to set up a meeting with the justice department to present a new plan to satisfy the order. That plan consists of, among other things, having private citizens replace their sewer laterals, and putting in more efficient eaves troughs and down spouts.
FDL Embezzlement Case Raising Questions in another Case
2/18/10 - The investigation into alleged embezzlement by three employees of Fond du Lac’s Management Information Systems Department has raised questions about their role in the Ben Mercer case. In the fall of 2007 a jury found the former City Human Resources Director guilty of 14 counts of possession of child pornography. MIS workers were whistleblowers in that case. However during the trial former City Manager Tom Ahrens testified that there were some conflicts between Mercer and the MIS. Fond du Lac Assistant Police Chief Kevin Lemke, the initial investigator in the Mercer case, says the evidence he received from MIS workers and presented to state investigators hasn’t been compromised.
Farms Weather the Recession
2/18/10 - Wisconsin farms made it through the brunt of the recession in 2009 – but many had lower sales due to lower milk prices. The U-S-D-A said the number of Wisconsin farms remained steady last year, at about 78-thousand. And their average size of 195 acres stayed about the same, too. But only 38-hundred farms had more than a half-million-dollars in sales – 200 fewer than the previous year. The number of farms with sales of a quarter-million to a half-million-dollars rose by 300, to 55-hundred. About 94-hundred farms had sales of 100-thousand to a quarter-million – 100 more than in 2008. More than 20-thousand farms had sales of 10-to-99-thousand dollars.
Church Burglar Sentenced
2/18/10 - A former Beaver Dam man will spend five years in prison for breaking into a church. In September, Trevor Waller pleaded “no contest” to a felony Burglary charge related to a break-in at the First Lutheran Church of Beaver Dam in October of 2008. In exchange, the 28-year-old had a misdemeanor charge of Criminal Damage to Property, and two other felony Burglary charges dismissed but read into the record. Authorities heard about the First Lutheran burglary while they were one block down the street at the United Methodist Church investigating a similar break-in. Authorities found blood and fingerprint evidence at First Lutheran and connected it to Waller, who was also charged, along with two others, with break-ins at Kelm Painting and Beaver Plumbing around the same time. Kurtis Billings was previously sentenced two years in prison and four years of extended supervision. Tabatha Pellett, a Stoughton woman who was with the pair during some of the burglaries, pled to reduced charges in July and was placed on probation. At sentencing yesterday, Waller, the purported ringleader, was also ordered to serve five years of extended supervision.
Watertown Teen Committed For Arson
2/18/10 - A Watertown teen will be committed to a mental health facility for setting fire to a portable toilet. Bryan Lamar Pirtle Klitzka yesterday (Wed) entered a plea of “not guilty by reason of insanity” to reduced misdemeanor charges of Criminal Damage To Property. According to the criminal complaint, Klitzka used a lighter to ignite the porta-potty at a Watertown skate park last June. The witness who loaned him the lighter told police he thought Klitzka was joking when he said he was going to start the fire. After he was taken into custody, Klitzka told authorities that he did it because his social worker told him if he set another fire he would have to go to a mental health institution. He said he preferred that to living with one of his relatives. Klitzka was committed to the Department of Health Services for examination.
BDPD Investigates Apartment Garage Break-In
2/18/10 - The Beaver Dam Police Department is investigating multiple burglaries from garage units at a couple apartment complexes. Deputy Chief Dan Schubert says they received the first of many calls reporting the break-in around 5:50am Wednesday. The subjects were able to gain access to the garage units on Industrial and Knaup Drives by lifting an unlocked overhead garage door. Once inside one of the units, the subjects were able to gain access to all the garage units by maneuvering through the rafters. Schubert says they have already identified six to seven different thefts and they are continuing to interview potential victims. The items taken include prescription drugs, miscellaneous tools, GPS units, iPods, a wallet and loose change. Schubert is urging all residents to lock their car doors and to never leave valuables inside a vehicle, especially money or prescription meds.
Lawmakers Accept High-Speed Rail Money
2/18/10 - Despite some worries about who will pay for backing a high-speed rail line in the future, Wisconsin lawmakers have voted to accept 822 million dollars in federal stimulus funding. The money would pay for the high-speed rail service between Madison, Milwaukee and Chicago. Republicans expressed concerns that funding for the line in the future would be put on the backs of state taxpayers. Service on that line should start in 2013, with stops planned in Brookfield, Oconomowoc and Watertown.
Gonzales To Face Blanchard
2/18/10 - La Crosse County Circuit Judge Ramona Gonzalez will join Dane County D-A Brian Blanchard on the April ballot for the Fourth District Court of Appeals. Blanchard easily won a primary yesterday. But we didn’t know who took second until today, because three of the 24 counties in the district had not yet reported their results. Un-official totals have Blanchard with 27-thousand-117 votes, and Gonzalez with 15-thousand-164. Richland County Circuit Judge Edward Leineweber was eliminated with 13-thousand-407 votes. The winner in April will replace Charles Dykman, who’s retiring from a three-member that hears appeals throughout southern and central Wisconsin.
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