Top Stories, August 30th

In Session: Dodge County Alcohol Court

8/30/10 - A new alcohol court will be called into session this week in Dodge County. Judge Brian Pfitzinger has been working on starting an alcohol court since campaigning for his circuit court seat in 2008. Pfitzinger says a person who pleads guilty to a second or third OWI can choose to enroll in alcohol court as a condition of their probation. Instead of just having a typical 20-day prison sentence, Pfitzinger says probation agents, alcohol court coordinators and the court itself will monitor the offender’s sobriety throughout the 18 month probation. While offenders in alcohol court may see a lesser jail sentence, the court still has the option to increase those penalties if the offender chooses not to remain sober. Pfitzinger says the goal is to get the offender sober for their own good and for the good of the community. The plan was approved by the county’s judges earlier this month. The county board, however, refused to fund the program, but Pfitzinger says volunteers from the community stepped forward.

Investigation Continues Into Fatality

8/30/10 - Authorities continue their investigation into a fatal accident Friday morning in the town of Oak Grove. 61-year-old Sheila Fuller of Horicon was killed after rear-ending a stopped truck on Highway 33. The jaws-of-life were needed to remove Fuller from the vehicle. She was pronounced dead at the Beaver Dam Community Hospital. The driver of the truck, 50-year-old Russell Keel, was uninjured.

Madison Street Detoured This Week

8/30/10 - There will be a detour on Madison Street in Beaver Dam all week long for a resurfacing project. Milling is expected to begin this morning at Curie Street and proceed northerly to Rowell Street. Paving is scheduled for tomorrow and Wednesday with pavement markings painted by Thursday night. Madison Street should be opened to traffic by Friday.

Pedestrian Bridge In Place

8/30/10 - The pedestrian bridge in Beaver Dam’s Tower Parking Lot was installed on Friday but won’t be open for use until the end of next month. In the meantime, the city will be working on lot improvements, which include redesigned parking spaces, a pedestrian path and landscaping. The bridge is part of the city’s phase two downtown revitalization plan that began last year with the removal of ten buildings from the floodway over the Beaver Dam River.