Top Stories December 1st

WBEV Celebrates 60th Anniversary

12/1/11 - There was a huge turnout from the community as WBEV celebrated its 60th anniversary yesterday. Station owners past and present joined us during our 14 hour and 30 minute Anniversary celebration yesterday. Former managing owner John Klinger was among a group of investors who purchased WBEV in 1973 and he stayed at the helm for nearly 25 years before selling to Craig Karmazin. Klinger says selling WBEV was one of the hardest things he’s ever done but says the sale went smoothly and he remains friends with the current owner. Craig Karmazin hails from the east coast and says he planned on buying his first radio station in Madison, which he considered a small city. When the opportunity to purchase WBEV came along, Karmazin told John Moser and Bill McCollum yesterday that he quickly realized it was the perfect first radio station for his newly-formed Good Karma Broadcasting. Karmazin says if you want to do your homework on a community in some places you go to their library, check their newspaper or ask a local historian. When he realized that all he had to do here was listen to WBEV, he knew he didn’t have to change a thing. Karmazin’s relationship with the WBEV community continues to grow as Beaver Dam remains his corporate office for Good Karma Broadcasting and its eleven radio stations in three states.

WBEV was presented with a proclamation yesterday from the leader of the Wisconsin Senate, Scott Fitzgerald of Juneau. The proclamation noted the radio stations 60-year commitment to the community, and specifically mentioned the million dollars raised to date through the Annual Children’s Radiothon.

Iron Ridge Man Gets 8th OWI

12/1/11 - On the eve of his 60th birthday an Iron Ridge-area man was arrested on suspicion of his 8th drunk driving charge. The Dodge County Sheriff’s Department says a deputy pulled over Dennis Grosenick Tuesday night after observing him cross the center line and almost put his vehicle into the ditch while making a right hand turn. A preliminary breath test indicated that Grosenick’s blood alcohol level was nearly three times legal limit of .08. Grosenick is currently being held at the Dodge County Jail on the OWI charge, having open intoxicants in the vehicle and violating his probation. If convicted he faces 10-years in prison and a $25,000 fine.

Two Injured in Head-On Collision

12/1/11 - Authorities say a 28-year-old man was allegedly under the influence of drugs when he hit another vehicle head-on Tuesday night, injuring himself and the driver of the other car. It happened just before 5:30 p-m on Highway 33 near County Trunk V in the town of Hubbard. Dodge County Patrol Captain Molly Soblewski says Aaron Lintz was driving west on Highway 33, when he crossed the centerline and struck an eastbound vehicle. Both Lintz and the 57-year-old driver of the other vehicle were taken to the hospital. After being released Lintz was taken to jail for OWI 2nd Offense Causing Injury and Operating After Revocation 2nd.

No “Open Carry” in State Government Buildings

12/1/11 - The Walker administration said today it will not allow people to openly carry firearms in any state government building – even if they have permits to conceal them. Tim Lundquist of the Administration Department said anyone openly carrying a firearm will be asked to leave. Democrats raised concerns about allowing open guns at the Capitol. They said it could intimidate visitors, and it could result in people carrying in rifles and shotguns over time. A group that advocates the so-called “open carry” took issue with the state’s new policy. Nik Clark of Wisconsin Carry Incorporated said it’s not logical. He told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel quote, “If someone had a gun, wouldn’t you rather know it? – I would.” Another member of Wisconsin Carry, Greg Miller of Independence said he supports the open carry ban in the Capitol for now because of the current polarized political climate. Permit holders are allowed to carry concealed weapons in most parts of the Capitol except the Senate gallery, the Supreme Court hearing room, some lawmakers’ offices, and the Capitol Police headquarters.

Lawyer Still Waiting to Be Paid

12/1/11 - Republican state Assembly leaders have refused for over five months to pay a legal bill from an attorney for the Democratic minority leader of that house. Bob Jambois submitted a 15-thousand-dollar bill in June for his services. And according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, he's still waiting to get paid. Jambois represented Democrat Peter Barca in a lawsuit from the Dane County district attorney. The suit claimed that a legislative panel broke the Open Meeting Law when it endorsed the collective bargaining limits for most public union workers. Barca was the only Democrat at the committee meeting, and he claimed the G-O-P was breaking the public meetings law. But the Supreme Court said Republicans acted legally. And legislative leaders have paid the attorney fees for leaders of both parties in the suit except for Barca. Assembly Speaker Jeff Fitzgerald of Horicon said Barca's legal fees were not paid while the suit was pending, and they were not officially denied until late October. Fitzgerald said he's looking into the question of whether the Assembly is legally required to pay it. If it doesn't, Jambois says he'll go to court to try and get what he's owed.

Percentage of Senior Citizens on the Rise in WI

12/1/11 - Wisconsinites are getting grayer -- just like other Americans. The U-S Census Bureau said yesterday that the number of Badger State residents 65-and-older grew by 10-point-six percent in the last decade. The Census counted 777-thousand senior citizens in Wisconsin last year. That's just under 14-percent of the state's population. And in five-of-every-six counties, the percentage of residents 65-and-older was higher than the national average. Nationally, the 2010 Census counted 40-point-three million Americans 65-and-older. That's 15-percent more than in 2000 -- higher than the nation's total population growth of nine-point-seven percent.

Washington DC Man Suing Hartland Business

12/1/11 - A man from Washington D-C is suing the Hartland-based Triad Group for over 10-million dollars. William Preston West Junior said he received a Bacillus-cereus infection from using Triad's alcohol pads while being treated for multiple sclerosis. West said he needed several surgeries -- and he had to go for two months without taking any medicines for his M-S. The suit calls for five-million-dollars in punitive damages, plus a million-dollars for his wife Carolyn. Triad refuses comment on the lawsuit. It previously denied any connection between its alcohol wipes and 11 deaths the government says those products have caused. Triad and its H-and-P factory were shut down in April, when U-S marshals seized over six-million dollars worth of products. A federal consent decree in June spelled out conditions Triad must meet to re-open the plant. It remains closed.

Ryan to Face Recall in Sheboygan

12/1/11 - Opponents of Sheboygan Mayor Bob Ryan were successful in forcing a recall election against him. City Clerk Sue Richards said yesterday that enough valid petition signatures were filed to order the Common Council to schedule the vote for January 17th. Ryan is being targeted for three major alcohol-related episodes in the first two-and-a-half years of his four-year term. The latest was in July, when he admitted going on a three-day drinking binge in Elkhart Lake. Recall organizers needed 41-hundred-21 signatures, and they got over 600 more than that. Richards says she won't know the final number of valid signatures until later today. But she said 10 different computer checks and other processes convinced her that enough signatures were obtained. Richards will give her report to the Council on Monday. Ryan says he won't challenge the petitions, and he'll wage what he calls a "vigorous campaign" to keep his job. Ryan admits he's an alcoholic, and is getting help.

Veteran to Run for Vacated US House Seat

12/1/11 - An Iraq War veteran plans to enter the race for the U-S House seat that's being given up by Madison Democrat Tammy Baldwin. Matt Silverman of Madison is the fourth Democrat to run for the open seat next fall. He told the A-P he won the Bronze Star and several other medals in Iraq -- and he has undergraduate and law degrees from U-W Madison. The 29-year-old Silverman plans to make his bid official this evening. He said Congress is set up to fail because special interests keep lawmakers from making hard decisions. And Sullivan promised to take campaign gifts from individuals and not groups. Baldwin is leaving the House in order to run for the U-S Senate next fall. State Assembly Democrats Mark Pocan and Kelda Helen Roys, both of Madison, are running for Baldwin's House seat, along with Dane County Treasurer Dave Worzella. No Republicans are running yet. The district includes much of south central Wisconsin.