Top Stories, January 28th

Man Suffers Burns During Car Fire


1/28/11 - Authorities are still investigating a car fire in the town of Beaver Dam yesterday morning that left a man hospitalized. It happened just after 11-am on Parker Road. According to the Dodge County Sheriff’s Department, the driver lost control of his vehicle and ended up in a ditch. In attempting to get the car out it apparently started on fire. Officials say there were able to get the fire under control and were on scene for about 40-minutes. The Sheriff’s Department says the driver did suffer some burns and was taken to Beaver Dam Community Hospital. Alcohol is believed to have played a factor in the crash.

Patnode Leaving Beaver Dam

1/28/11 - Don Patnode will be leaving the Beaver Dam School District at the end of the school year. That’s after the school board unanimously approved accepting his resignation during a special meeting last night. Patnode is currently the principal of the district’s Don Smith Learning Academy. He’s been with the district for 20-years and prior to this year he had been serving as the high school principal since 2006. Superintendent Steve Vessey says Patnode cited personal reasons for his resignation. The district hopes to begin looking for a replacement early this spring. Patnode has been the main focus of two open records requests filed against the district and Vessey in the past six months.

Columbus Funds Street Maintenance Projects

1/28/11 - Reacting to a recent resident survey the Columbus Council voted to allocate $500 thousand dollars annually to major Street Repair and $50 thousand to street “maintenance” projects. This week the Council received initial 2011 street maintenance recommendations from the City’s engineering consultant. Columbus residents are likely to face at least 10 improvement projects on some of the busier streets during the 2011 construction season.

Spike In Mail, Phone Scams In Columbia County

1/28/11 - Columbia County authorities are warning the public of an increase in local mail and phone scams. Sheriff Dennis Richards says in the last two weeks there have been over a dozen scams reported in the greater-Columbia County area. Emails or letters have been sent to area residents announcing they’ve won a large amount of money in a sweepstakes and have to send a money order to cover fees. Sometimes a fake check will be sent. A phone scam that is popular in the area again has the caller claim to be authorities from overseas saying that a friend of loved one has been arrested and needs bond money. There have also been scams reported where the con artist impersonates a member of the military who calls needing money to travel back to the U.S. Sheriff Richards says the public needs to be very cognizant and diligent when they are solicited to send money anywhere. There are also many variations on these scams and he says anyone with concerns or questions should contact local law enforcement or the state Consumer Protection Agency.

Waupun Woman Jailed For Burglarizing Ex

1/28/11 - A Waupun woman will spend 90 days in jail for burglarizing her ex-boyfriends house. It all started last August, when the victim approached a police officer saying he wanted to report an attempted murder. He had awoken to the smell of natural gas and discovered the burners on his stove were turned on but not lit. There was a kerosene lantern that was lit in the living room. His laptop was stolen along with his camera, cell phone and other computer equipment. He suspected his ex because there were some racy photos of her on his laptop. After ten minutes of questioning, Marcia Fielder confessed to police that she stole the items and threw them in the woods. The 51-year-old also told police that she had turned the burners on and forgot about them, while making spaghetti. She said she had trouble remembering things. Fiedler pleaded “no contest” to felony Theft and Burglary while felony counts of Arson and Reckless Endangerment were dismissed. In addition to three months in jail with Huber work privileges, Fiedler was placed on probation for three years and ordered to pay $476 in restitution.

Five Months For Town of Shields Burglar

1/28/11 - A Jefferson County man will spend 150 days in jail for burglarizing a house in the Town of Shields. Tyler Parpart of Jefferson pleaded “guilty” this week in Dodge County court to a felony charge of Theft of Movable Property. The 24-year-old smashed open the back door of the residence in October of 2009 and stole guns, a television and a safe with around $6000 in cash.

Wiebelhaus Waives Prelim In 2006 Chase

1/28/11 - A Neosho man will proceed to trial on charges that he sparked a police chase nearly five years ago. Robert J. Wiebelhaus waived his right to a preliminary hearing yesterday and had an arraignment hearing set for next month. Wiebelhaus is charged with felony fleeing for allegedly running from police in March of 2006. According to the criminal complaint, the 39-year-old was speeding on Highway 67 in the village of Neosho and refused to pull over when police initiated a traffic stop. Wiebelhaus reportedly led police on a one-mile chase through an old garbage dump to Highway 60. His vehicle left the roadway, vaulted over a hill and then got stuck in a heavily wooded area. Several beer cans were found in the car but Wiebelhaus was nowhere to be found. A warrant was issued for his arrest after he failed to show up to his first initial appearance in 2006. Wiebelhaus had a cash bond set at $500 during an Initial Hearing earlier this month.

Teen Gets Probation For Parks Dept Break-In

1/28/11 - A teen who broke into the Beaver Dam Parks and Recreation building on Christmas Eve has entered into a plea agreement with prosecutors. Donny J. Lafferty was charged with felony burglary but pleaded to reduced misdemeanor charges of Attempted Theft and Disorderly Conduct and had a Trespass charge dismissed but read into the record. Authorities responded to a silent alarm at the city-owned building on West South Street just after 4am and found the 18-year-old inside. Lafferty told authorities that he was bored and jumped over the fence behind his residence. He said he had only been in the unlocked building for five minutes and did not plan on stealing anything. Lafferty was placed on probation, ordered to obtain his high school diploma and must pay $275 in restitution.

Cleaning Lady Thief Pleads To Reduced Charges

1/28/11 - A Madison cleaning lady who stole thousands of dollars from a customer in Dodge County pled to reduced misdemeanor charges yesterday. 25-year-old Erin Posthuma had been charged with felony Theft for stealing the money throughout the winter of 2009. Authorities say the man signed blank checks and she wrote in a higher amount than she should have been paid, sometimes as much as $1000 more on some occasions. Posthuma was placed on probation for one year and has a restitution hearing set for March 8.

Vehicle Description In Paintball Vandalism

1/28/11 - The Beaver Dam Police Department has a partial vehicle description in a recent paintball vandalism spree. A witness reported to police Wednesday that they saw a brown SUV, possibly a Chevrolet Trailblazer, outside the Beaver Dam Middle School. A subject got out and paint-balled the school, leaving orange paint ball marks on the west and north sides of the building. There were three reports of homes and vehicles targeted Tuesday night on Lakeshore, De Clark and North Spring streets. Three more reports were made filed yesterday on Grove, Henry and South University. Anyone with information is asked to contact the Beaver Dam Police Department.

Found du Lac Outlaws Fake Pot

1/28/11 - The City of Fond du Lac has joined Beaver Dam and 16 other communities around the state in enacting an ordinance prohibiting the possession of synthetic marijuana. The Council unanimously adopted the ordinance this week makes it a municipal violation to possess. Deputy Police Chief Kevin Lemke says they hope the ordinance is a temporary measure and federal and state officials will create their own laws. The fine for possessing it in Fond du Lac will be $208.

Appeals Court Sides With Former Sauk Co Sheriff

1/28/11 - A state appeals court said Thursday that a former Sauk County sheriff acted properly when he rejected a county supervisor’s request to obtain records. Thomas Kriegl wanted information about jail inmates on work release. But then-Sheriff Randy Stammen said there were not specific documents that contained what Kriegl was asking for. And he would have needed somebody to dig through 100-thousand pages of records to find the information that Kriegl requested. A circuit court also ruled in favor of Stammen, but the judge rejected the sheriff’s request to have Kriegl pay his legal fees in the case. The circuit court did not give a reason for the denial – and the appellate judges told the circuit court to reconsider that part of Thursday’s ruling.

Fitzgerald Doubts Smoking Ban Retooling

1/28/11 - Assembly Speaker Jeff Fitzgerald says there’s not much interest by the new Republican majority in the Legislature to revisit Wisconsin’s smoking ban. The Republican from Horicon says lawmakers seem to want to “move past” what was a very divisive issue. Although Fitzgerald believed it was wrong for a private business to be told what to do regarding a legal product like tobacco. Governor Walker has also signaled that he’s not interested in renewing debate on smoking and the Tavern League isn’t pushing for any action on the issue. A report from the UW this week cites evidence that the ban has not been an economic burden for bars and restaurants.

Legislators Forward Tax Cut Bill

1/28/11 - The Wisconsin Legislature gave its final approval Thursday to tax cuts for businesses that create jobs. The Senate voted 25-to-8 to send the measure to Republican Governor Scott Walker – who proposed it as part of his overall plan to boost the state’s economy. All eight no votes were from Democrats. Six other Democrats joined all the Republicans in okaying the tax break. Companies will get an income tax discount of between 92-and-316 dollars for every job they create over the next two years. Chippewa Falls Republican Terry Moulton called the tax cuts modest – and he believes it will encourage at least some businesses to add more employees. Also, Moulton said it would create what he called “employer confidence” when the tax cut is combined with Walker’s other bills. But Democrats say the tax break is not enough to spur new hiring. Monona Democrat Mark Miller said it would only add another 67-million-dollars to the state’s revenue shortfall between now and mid-2013. The tax break is expected to reduce tax revenues by 33-and-a-half million dollars a year. Walker will explain during the next month how he plans to eliminate the state’s deficit.

Walker Signs-Off on Tort Reform

1/28/11 - Governor Scott Walker approved major changes today in the way Wisconsin courts treat civil liability cases. The Republican governor signed a bill that limits damages in suits filed against companies and doctors. Walker said it still guarantees that businesses which cause harm will be “rightfully” penalized, while reducing the frivolous lawsuits that companies fear, especially small businesses. Democrats say the measure doesn’t create a single job, and it puts profits ahead of public safety. Among other things, the new law puts limits on punitive damages, except in cases against drunk drivers. It restricts the types of expert testimony that can be given in liability trials. And it requires plaintiffs to identify the companies they accuse of causing harm. That measure is designed to nullify a 2005 State Supreme Court ruling which allowed the family of a Milwaukee youngster to sue all lead-paint manufacturers, because the family didn’t know which company provided the paint that made the child sick. The law takes effect in 10 days, and it applies to all lawsuits filed after that time – even if the plaintiffs were injured before the bill was passed. But the head of a trial lawyers’ group said it’s unconstitutional to apply the law to those injured before it was enacted. And the group expects a legal challenge on that.

Museum Directors Make Super Bowl Bet

1/28/11 - Have those football bets by public leaders gone too far? You’ve got to wonder, after art museums in Milwaukee and Pittsburgh made a bet on the Super Bowl. The museum whose team loses will have to give the other one a fine Impressionist painting – but only as a temporary loan. If the Packers beat the Steelers, the Milwaukee Art Museum will get “Bathers with Crab” by Pierre-Auguste Renoir. If the Steelers win, the Carnegie Museum of Art in Pittsburgh will get “Boating on the Yerres” by Gustav Caillebotte. Modern art critic Tyler Green convinced the two museums to make a bet on the Big Game. He did the same a year ago with museums in New Orleans and Indianapolis, just before the Saints beat the Indianapolis Colts in Super Bowl-44. Milwaukee Art Museum director Daniel Keegan says he looks forward to displaying the Renoir where the public can be reminded of the quote, “superiority of the Green Bay Packers.” Pittsburgh museum director Lynn Zelevansky says she doesn’t believe in trash talk. She says the excellence of the Steelers and her museum’s collection speak for themselves.