Top Stories September 13th

BDPD Learning Firsthand About Bath Salt Drug

9/13/11 - The Beaver Dam Police Department last month responded to the areas first known overdose case involving the new legal drug being marketed as “bath salts.” Police Detective Ryan Klavekoske says his department got a call about a man who was hallucinating. The affected individual was not injured but Klavekoske says there have been fatalities connected to bath salts. He says the company’s that are marketing this drug know what it is being used for. At $50 bucks a pop the over the counter chemical is not being dissolved in a bathtub but is instead being ingested for an amphetamine-like high. Over a dozen states have outlawed bath salts and legislators in Wisconsin are starting to look at criminalizing its components much in the same way they did recently with synthetic marijuana.

Hartford Man Charged In BD Pistol Whipping

9/13/11 - A Hartford man has been formally charged in connection with a pistol-whipping last month. It happened in the 600 block of Madison Street just after 2am. Mark Patterson is charged with felony Substantial Battery Intending Bodily Harm and a half dozen misdemeanors including Intentionally Pointing a Firearm, Operating a Firearm While Intoxicated and Disorderly Conduct. According to the criminal complaint, the 46-year-old met up with a group of people at a Madison Street bar and they went to a nearby residence for an “after hours” party. A woman in the group says Patterson attempted to kiss her while the two were alone outside and then he became enraged and made up a story about her owing him $70. Patterson says he loaned her $70 so that she could purchase cocaine for herself then she lied about his advances and had the group kick him out so that she didn’t have to pay him back. Authorities say he pulled a gun and everyone ran into the house except the 23-year-old Beaver Dam man who apparently didn’t want Patterson messing with his car which was parked outside. Patterson says he approached the house looking for his money, was confronted by two men and acted in self-defense. His blood alcohol level was said to be point-one-four. The victim sustained a closed head injury, eye contusion and concussion. A signature bond was set at $1000 yesterday and a preliminary hearing is on the calendar next month. Because Patterson is considered a repeat offender, the charges carry a maximum sentence of just under 25 years in prison upon convicted.

Sussex Man Charged With Dodge County OWI Injury

9/13/11 - A Sussex man is facing charges of OWI Causing Injury in Dodge County. Ryan Pinkert is charged with three felonies including OWI Causing Injury and Causing Injury While Operating On A Controlled Substance. The 28-year-old was allegedly driving drunk after a Christmas Party in Iron Ridge last December. According to the criminal complaint, he thought he was heading toward Milwaukee when he got into a physical confrontation with his passenger and wound up hitting a tree in the Town of Clyman. His passenger sustained head injuries. A preliminary breath test put Pinkert over the legal limit for driving at point-one-one-seven. A blood test allegedly revealed other drugs in his system, including cocaine and Oxycodone. A preliminary hearing was set at $1000 yesterday and a preliminary hearing is on the calendar next month. If convicted, the charges carry a maximum sentence of 18 years in prison and license revocation of over four years.

Dells Resort Arcade Game Credit Card Numbers Hacked

9/13/11 - A Wisconsin Dells company has announced that its credit card processing system was hacked. Vacationland Vendors said people should watch out for unauthorized charges in their accounts, if they used debit-or-credit cards in the arcade at the Wilderness Resort in the Dells from last December 12th to May 25th of this year. A similar processing system was hacked at the Smokies Resort in Sevierville Tennessee around the same time. Vacationland Vendors said up to 40-thousand debit-and-credit cards in the two arcades might have been affected by the breach – which occurred on March 22nd. The company said it shut down its card processing systems at both arcades as soon as they learned about the problem.

Beaver Dam Bike Park Being Discussed

9/13/11 - A Beaver Dam alderman wants to open a bicycle track. Matt O’Brion outlined his preliminary plans to the Operations Committee last night. He says the track would provide a healthy activity to area youth and cost less than the skate park that has been discussed over the years. O’Brion said about two acres would be needed and a lot of dirt. The police chief said lighting would be important for public safety along with access for squad cars. While no site has been chosen, one alderwoman suggested retrofitting the existing Smythe Park on the city’s south side. Other possible locations were suggested near the retention pond along Highway 151 on the city’s north side and the county-owned, former Metal Fab property. O’Brion’s conceptual plan was approved by consensus in committee last night and he plans to work on the specifics and discuss liability issues with the city attorney before bringing a formal recommendation back to the Operations Committee.

League Of Women Voters To Challenge ID Law

9/13/11- A lawsuit that seeks to strike down Wisconsin’s new photo I-D law for voting will be filed in the next couple weeks. That’s what the head of the state’s League of Women Voters, Andrea Kaminski, told the state Government Accountability Board Monday. The league has spent the summer raising money to fight the requirement that Wisconsin voters show photo I-D’s at the polls starting next February. Kaminski told the panel that the law is unconstitutional, saying it creates a class of people who won’t have the proper I-D’s to vote. The law allows people to get free I-D’s if they need them. But a controversy was raised in the last week, after it was learned that motor vehicle employees were told by one of their bosses to provide the free I-D’s only if people ask for them. Kaminski said the league’s lawsuit against the voter law would be filed in state court.

Voter ID Law Clarified For College Students

9/13/11 - The Wisconsin elections panel has clarified the types of college identification cards that students can use to vote under the state’s new photo I-D law. The Government Accountability Board agreed today to let schools place stickers on student I-D’s to show when they were issued, and when they expire. Republicans decided to require students to use school I-D’s for only two years after they’re issued – even though many schools make the cards good for up to five years. Student voters can only use school I-D’s from public-or-private schools that hand out associate degrees and higher. I-D’s from the state’s technical and trade schools will not be accepted at the polls. Also, students must prove they’re enrolled in college when they vote – but the Legislature did not prescribe how that will be enforced. Students can also use their drivers’ licenses from their home towns to vote back there. The I-D requirement takes effect next February. The state’s League of Women Voters says the law is unconstitutional. League president Andrea Kaminski told the board today her group would file a lawsuit in state court in the next week-or-two.

Poor, Elderly Advocates Studying Medicaid Cuts

9/13/11 - It’s been two months since Governor Scott Walker approved a 500-million-dollar spending cut in Wisconsin’s Medicaid programs. And advocates for the poor and the elderly are still waiting to learn what the Republican governor has in mind. Some proposals – like reducing Badger-Care-Plus – need the federal government’s blessing before the end of the year. And the state Legislature’s finance panel must also pass judgment on the Medicaid cuts. In the meantime, a dozen advocacy groups fear that Walker will not give recipients enough time to comment on the changes before they have to be rushed off to Washington. State health services spokeswoman Stephanie Smiley said the plans will be made public before they’re sent to the federal government. Smiley tells the Wisconsin State Journal we should get more details in the next few weeks. The changes could drastically affect one-of-every-five state residents. About one-point-two million Wisconsinites are on some type of Medicaid program. The half-billion dollars in Medicaid cuts would happen over the next two years. In March, Health Services Secretary Dennis Smith said the changes could include higher premiums and co-pays – reimbursing hospitals based on the quality of their services – and not increasing Medicaid payments to doctors who handle complex patients.