Local News Briefs Monday 10/12/15

Toxicology Tests Pending In Two High Profile Dodge County Accident Cases

Dodge County Sheriff Dale Schmidt says they are still waiting on toxicology tests before any charges are finalized in two tragic accidents. Late last month three young children were seriously injured when a car rolled over on I-41. The driver 30-year-old Tory Agnew of Milwaukee was arrested for operating under the influence, but Schmidt says toxicology tests will determine what he was under the influence of. He says charges will likely be modified in that case. In another accident 20-year-old Cody Buechel of Beaver Dam drove his pickup truck off of County Highway G and struck 17-year-old Lukas Jaeger of Juneau who was walking with friends. Jaeger was killed. Schmidt says they are waiting for toxicology tests on Buechel in that case too. He says field sobriety tests were performed on Buechel and no impairment was detected.

NFDL Budget Being Reviewed

The North Fond du Lac Village Board will hold a special meeting tonight to discuss the proposed 2016 Village Budget. Village Administrator Chuck Hornung says department heads will review their needs for next year. He says the board won’t be acting on the budget for several months, but it’s an opportunity to answer questions that might come up. The meeting is at 5 p.m. at the municipal building in North Fond du Lac.

FDL School Board Considers STEM Institute Expansion

The Fond du Lac School Board tonight will consider approving changes to its charter school contract with the STEM Institute Governance Board to allow the addition of a high school component at the institute. That would begin with Grade 9 in the 2016-17 School Year. One additional grade level would be added each year over three years. Officials say discussions about adding the high school component have been going on for nearly two years. The board will also consider increasing the pay for substitute teachers to $105 a day. There has not been an adjustment to substitute teacher wages since the 2008-2009 School Year. The board meets at 5 p.m. at the District Administration Center Board Room.

Oshkosh Sex Offender Moving

Oshkosh Police say a 39-year-old sex offender is moving to 815 Franklin Street today. Xeng Lo will be monitored through GPS and electronic monitoring. He was convicted of 2nd degree sexual assault in 1998 and 2003. His victims were 15 and 12-year-old girls.

Smoke Alarms Important

National Fire Prevention Week may be over, but an official with the Northeastern Wisconsin Chapter of the Red Cross says its message about using working smoke detectors is still pertinent. Barbara Behling says recently they worked with Fond du Lac Fire and Rescue to visit homes in high risk neighborhoods where working smoke alarms may be a luxury. She says they provided new smoke alarms to those who didn’t have a working smoke alarm. She says they also passed along fire safety tips to the families they visited with. During the past week the theme of Fire Prevention Week had to do with installing working smoke alarms in every bedroom of a home.

Pedestrian And Bicyclist Fatalities Up From Last Year

Wisconsin has seen an increase in the number of pedestrian and bicycle fatalities along public roadways this year. Larry Corsi of the state Department of Transportation’s Bureau of Transportation Safety says this time of year it’s especially important that motorists, bicyclists and pedestrians be extra alert. He says hours of daylight are decreasing and kids are back in school. Corsi says both pedestrian and bicyclist fatalities are up compared to this time last year. Through the first nine months of this year, 40 pedestrians have died in crashes compared to 29 over the same period a year ago. Also, 13 bicyclists have died compared with three during the same period in 2014. Last month a 17-year-old boy was hit and killed by a pickup truck in Dodge County while he was walking with friends after dark.

Identity Theft Moving Up List Of Consumer Complaints

The division administrator of the State’s Trade and Consumer Protection Department says Identity Theft is quickly inching up the list of the Top Ten complaints they receive each year. It is at number four on the list, but the department has already gotten 16 percent more complaints about identity theft than the total they receive for 2014. Frank Frasetto says in 2014 they received 11,526 identity theft complaints. He says it’s something their department tries to do a lot of preventive education about. Tips include never giving out personal information, guarding your social security number, shredding personal and financial documents, signing up for the No Call list, and placing a fraud alert or freezing your credit report if  you suspect identity theft. Frasetto says there are many different ways people can gain access to your identity.

Family Resource Center A United Way Agency

One of the 28 agencies the Fond du Lac Area United Way is helping out this year if the Family Resource Center. Family Resource Center Director Natasha Frye says they help out 550 families through their Parenting and Pregnancy Support program. She says they also distribute diapers, wipes, formula, clothing and clothing vouchers, child safety seats and they also do parenting classes and one-on-one parenting. She says they also provide classes and workshops for some of the other agencies that the United Way supports. She says that includes the Arc and the Beacon House to do parenting classes and workshops. United Way Executive Director Amber Kilawee says they appreciate the fact that the agencies they help fund provide help to each other. She says the Family Resource Center also work with Youth for Christ, which has a parent life program.