Local News Briefs Friday 10/18/13

Washington County’s District Attorney Mark Bensen yesterday decided that the shooting of a 24-year-old Waukesha man by three veteran law enforcement officers during a robbery attempt in Jackson was justified. The man was armed with a shotgun and knife when he tried to rob a Culver’s restaurant on Sunday, October 6th. The man stabbed the manager of the restaurant in the face while the two struggled for the shotgun before officers arrived. When officers arrived the man regained control of the gun and pointed it at the officers and they fired their weapons. He survived the shooting and the manager the stabbing. The suspect is still at Froedtert Hospital and provided investigators with a statement. Bensen determined from police reports and evidence that the Jackson Police officer and two Washington County Sheriff’s deputies were, “entirely appropriate and privledged by self-defense and defense of others” under state law. The officers had been on paid administrative leave since the incident. Criminal charges are pending against the suspect. Jackson Police Officer Ron Laabs is a 20 year veteran, and Sheriff’s Deputies Scott Nauman and Keith Uhan 15 and 12 year veterans of their departments.

Arsonist Operating In Beaver Dam

Beaver Dam Police believe they have a serial arsonist operating in their city. Over a three day span a camper was set on fire, there was a car fire and two attempted fires. Police say they were all in the same vicinity of the city and the same method was used for starting the fires. Physical evidence was gathered at the scenes and sent to the state crime lab. There was also a small basement fire that isn’t believed to be connected, but it is still under investigation.

Sheboygan Jewelry Store Burglarized

(WHBL-Sheboygan) Sheboygan Police are investigating a burglary to a downtown business Wednesday evening. According to Captain Jim Veeser, the department received word around 7:05 p.m. of a burglary alarm activated at Kisiolek’s Jewelers.  When authorities arrived they found the business had been entered and a number of jewelry items taken. The suspects fled the scene prior to police arriving.  Veeser said they are currently trying to identify four male subjects who were seen entering the business. Anyone with information about this crime is asked to call the Sheboygan Police Department at (920) 459-3333.

State Assembly Passes $100 Million Property Tax Cut

Two area State Assemblymen yesterday praised the State Assembly’s passage of the $100 million property tax relief bill. The Assembly passed the bill on an 82-12 vote. State Representative Jeremy Thiesfeldt of Fond du Lac says, “I am thrilled to see the state’s fiscal house in order and our business climate improving dramatically over the last three years so that we can return additional money back to the taxpayers.” State Representative Michael Schraa of Oshkosh says, ““I believe that families are best able to spend their hard-earned money, not the government.” The bill also adds another $153 million to the state’s rainy day fund. The bill has now passed in both the State Assembly and Senate and heads to the Governor’s desk for his signature into law.

Johnson And Baldwin Named To Budget Conference Committee

(Wisconsin Radio Network)-With the shutdown ended and default averted, three members of Wisconsin’s congressional delegation will serve on a key budget conference committee. House Budget Committee Paul Ryan, a Janesville Republican, will serve as the conference committee’s co-chair. Republican Senator Ron Johnson and Democratic Senator Tammy Baldwin will serve on the House-Senate panel charged with coming up with a federal spending and deficit-reduction plan by December 15th. Setting up the conference was part of the deal the Senate approved Wednesday to end the shutdown and raise the debt ceiling. Johnson said he ran for office to do what he could to prevent the bankrupting of America, and appreciates being named to the committee. Baldwin said she looks forward to working across party lines on the budget conference committee to find common ground on a bipartisan budget agreement.

Lakeside Park Dredging Information

A Minocqua firm was awarded the contract to dredge the Lakeside Park channels. Petersen Companies/PCi Dredging won the bid from the City of Fond du Lac and will begin the preparatory work next Monday. Public Works Director Jordan Skiff says the actual pumping of the channels will start in early November after the City gets a permit from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The work will be completed next May.  PCi will use a hydraulic dredging method to remove silt from the channels.  Water will remain in the channels, and barges will be used to vacuum silt from the channel bed.  The material will be piped to a vacant lot west of the dog park in Lakeside Park West, where the solids will be allowed to settle out and the clean water will be returned to Lake Winnebago or the Supple Marsh. The piping will be placed on the ground in the Park and will cross the Fond du Lac River underwater to allow use of the river during the project. The Harborview Drive boat launch into the channels will be closed and no boat traffic will be allowed within the channels. The dog park in Lakeside Park West should remain open during the winter, but the access road to the northwest will be closed to the public for the duration of the work. 

Plymouth National Guard Unit Returns From Deployment

Governor Scott Walker, Wisconsin Army National Guard officials, friends and family will welcome home about 80 soldiers a Plymouth-based National Guard unit today. The ceremony will be held at 1:45 p.m. at the Experimental Aircraft Association’s Hangar C in Oshkosh. The unit returns from nearly 10 months of fire support missions in Afghanistan. They returned to the U.S. on October 11th and spent several days completing post-mobilization requirements at Fort Bliss, Texas.

SWAT Team Training

The Green Lake Area Combined Tactical Unit conducted an active shooter drill at the Berlin Hospital in the City of Berlin Thursday morning. The team training event included mock 911 calls, initial patrol response, deployment of the CTU team, role players, safety coaches, and response from medic’s and the ThedaStar helicopter. The exercise began at 6:30 a.m.

FDL County Clerk Keeping Eye On Proposed Absentee Voting Change

Fond du Lac County Clerk Lisa Freiberg says she’s keeping an eye on state legislation that would change the times clerks would have to be available for in-person absentee voting. She says it scares her because most town clerks work full time at other jobs. She most of those clerks are accommodating when it comes to allowing someone to vote after they return from work, but the legislation would only allow in-person voting from 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. She says if the legislation goes through it will do away with that kind of flexibility.

New Records System For Dodge County Sheriff’s Dept Online

Dodge County Sheriff Pat Ninmann says their new records information system New World went on line September 23rd.  Eventually all law enforcement records in the County will be on the system, but Ninnman says for now the Sheriff’s Department is working the kinks out. She commends her transition team for their hard work. Sheriff Ninmann says if everything works out all the law enforcement agencies in the County will be using the system by next January. She says the effort began with her predecessor Sheriff Todd Nehls back in January of 2012 and is finally coming to fruition. It will allow officers to pull up information on people in their squad cars and map out criminal activities in case a pattern is emerging.

Ripon Drug Drop Box Soon Available 24/7

The City of Ripon will soon join the number of growing communities with a drug drop box. Ripon Police Chief Dave Lukoski says they partnered with Drug Free Communities of Fond du Lac County to secure a grant for the drug drop box. It will be located in the lobby of the Ripon City Hall beginning Friday, October 25th. He says it will be available for residents who would like to safely dispose of their old or unused prescription drugs. Lukoski says disposing of the medications this way has a couple of benefits they don’t end up in the wrong hands or hurt the environment. He says they ask that people place their pills in ziplock plastic bags and put the pill bottles in with their recyclables. They also request that liquid medications stay in their original bottles.