Local News Briefs Wednesday 4/23/14

The 31-year-old Fond du Lac man accused of stealing more than $114,000 while working for a computer company in the area has been sentenced to 18 months in prison. Christopher Gustavus was recently sentenced in Fond du Lac County Court on charges of misappropriation of ID information to obtain money and theft from a business setting. Eighty-three other charges were read into the record and dismissed.  He will also be on extended supervision and probation for five years and was ordered to pay more than $75,000 in restitution. Another 9 months in jail was imposed and stayed. According to the criminal complaint he used a company credit card and through the use of a PayPal account was able to use money he transferred from the computer company to purchase items for himself. The thefts occurred from August of 2011 through last April.

FDL Woman Allegedly Obtained Prescription Meds From Student

A 29-year-old Fond du Lac woman is suspected of obtaining prescription medicine from a student. According to the criminal complaint it happened while Kelly Gross was employed as an assistant teacher at the Fond du Lac High School last May. She’s charged with using a child to manufacture or distribute drugs, and possession with intent to deliver a controlled substance near a school and contributing to the delinquency of a child.  Gross allegedly offered to buy cigarettes from a 15-year-old student if the student would give her Adderall something she had a prescription for, but didn’t have any of at the time.   She’s free on a $1,000 signature bond and has a preliminary hearing on May 8th. She’s no longer with the school district.  

Three Arrested For Heroin Activity In Oshkosh

Oshkosh Police arrested three Milwaukee men last Friday after a traffic stop was made on a vehicle suspected in drug activity. Police initially stopped the vehicle just before 7 p.m., but it began driving again and a high risk traffic stop was made. The 32-year-old driver was arrested for heroin trafficking and fleeing an officer. Two passengers, 22 and 27-year-old men were arrested for being party to heroin trafficking and the 22-year-old also faces a marijuana possession charge. They were taken to the Winnebago County Jail.   

Sheboygan Purse Snatcher Charged

A Sheboygan man who snatched the purse of a Sheboygan woman last Friday, only to be nabbed by a Good Samaritan, was formally charged Tuesday in Sheboygan County Court.  28-year-old David Reichartz Jr. faces a felony charge of robbery with use of force and a misdemeanor theft charge. According to the criminal complaint, he pulled the purse from the woman’s arm near a Save a Lot Food Store and fled on foot, but 55-year-old Nicholas Salm of Sheboygan was passing by and witnessed the theft.  He followed Reichartz and tackled him as he went through the purse in a yard on Lincoln Avenue, then held him for police.

Leibham Announces Run For Congress

State Senator Joe Leibham announced Tuesday that he is hoping to become Congressman Leibham.  With more than 100 friends and family looking on, Leibham highlighted the reforms he supported while in the Legislature that put Wisconsin in a far better position.  He said now the federal government needs to be reformed. Leibham’s decision means he will not run for his State Senate seat this fall, a position he has held for the past 12 years. Leibham will face at least two Republicans in the August primary.  State Senator Glenn Grothman of West Bend and Assemblyman Duey Strobel have already announced their candidacies.  Meanwhile, on the Democratic side, Winnebago County Executive Mark Harris tossed his hat into the ring Tuesday as well, the first to do so for that party’s nomination.  They are all vying for the seat to be vacated by Tom Petri after 35 years in office.

FDL City Council Preview

The Fond du Lac City Council tonight will consider whether to create tax incremental financing for a plan to turn the former Rolling Meadows Nursing Home site into a 71-unit senior apartment building. The TIF funding would be equivalent to about $1 million in value. Construction is planned for this summer with the apartment building opening in the summer of 2015. Also this evening the Council will decide what process it wants to use to fill the vacancy created by the resignation of Councilman Dan Manning and consider approving a special use permit that would allow Marian University to purchase the A.C. Nielsen Building. The Council meets at 6 p.m. at the City-County Government Center.

Campbellsport Highway Garage Ground Breaking Thursday

Fond du Lac County officials will hold a ground breaking tomorrow at 12:30 p.m. at the new site in Campbellsport Industrial Park for the County’s new Campbellsport Highway Garage. County Highway Commissioner Tom Janke says it’s a more than $2.1 million project. He says there will be a lot more room for storage. The new building will be 17,300 square feet in size compared to the current building’s 5,400 square feet. It will also include a 3,600 ton capacity salt shed that will be shared between the State and County. The current facility was built in the 1930’s and is not big enough to store today’s equipment. The project should be finished by the end of the year.

Arc Capital Campaign Near Goal

Arc of Fond du Lac Executive Director David Boelter says they are getting close to reaching their $1.1 million goal in their capital campaign. He says they’ve raised more than $1 million in their first ever capital campaign in their 51 year history. He says they will be adding more group homes, a new roof, HVAC system and add more services. The Arc serves more than 750 people a year. To find out more about giving to the capital campaign call 923-3810 or visit their website. 

Existing Home Sales Down In March

Home sales remain sluggish in the Badger State. Dave Clark is an economist with the Wisconsin Realtors Association. He says March was not a good month with home sales down about 11.3 percent compared to March of 2013, but the median price of a home was up by a little under 2 percent. In Fond du Lac County last month home sales were down by 5.4 percent and the median price of a home was down seven-tenths of a percent. For more information click here.