Local News Briefs Wednesday 12/31/14

A 61-year-old Fond du Lac man has been charged for allegedly stealing $461,000 from a Fond du Lac business. Robert Mohr made his initial appearance in Fond du Lac County Court Tuesday on a felony theft charge. He was released on a $1,000 signature bond and has a preliminary hearing in February. According to the criminal complaint the thefts occurred while he and his former wife were running the Higher Level youth basketball camps. The thefts occurred over an eight year period. He allegedly wrote his wife’s signature on checks and made unauthorized transfers to pay off credit card debts.

Name Released In Fatal Green Lake County Accident

Green Lake County Sheriff’s officials have released the name of the Markesan woman killed in a roll over accident on County Highway A in the Town of Mackford last Friday morning. Forty-nine-year-old Lori Krueger was found lying in the roadway after the accident. She had been ejected from the SUV as it was rolling over. She was taken to a local hospital where she died. She had lost control of the SUV and it entered a ditch before it began rolling over.

Milwaukee Man Pleads To Armed Robbery Charge

A 24-year-old Milwaukee man involved in a robbery on Double D Road in the Town of Auburn in December of last year has entered a plea. Danny Morris recently entered an Alford Plea in Fond du Lac County Court to an armed robbery charge for the December 8th 2013 robbery. Three other charges were read into the record and dismissed. Two other men were also involved in the robbery and attack on a man and woman living at the residence. Morris was accidentally shot by one of the other suspects during the robbery and is now confined to a wheelchair. His sentencing hearing is scheduled for February 23rd.

Man And Baby Hit By Car In Oshkosh

A 21-year-old Oshkosh man and 1-year-old infant were struck by a Chrysler PT Cruiser Monday night in the 300 block of North Koeller Street. Oshkosh Police says the man was with a 22-year-old woman pushing a stroller in the right lane of traffic when a 26-year-old woman in the vehicle hit the man and baby. He was taken to Theda Clark Regional Medical Center and the infant to Aurora Hospital both with non-life threatening injuries. Alcohol and drugs were not believed to be involved in the crash. The driver submitted to a blood test and results are pending. No citations were issued.

Wireless Internet Access Improvements Among Top Accomplishments Of The Year

One of the major accomplishments for Fond du Lac County this past year had to do with improving wireless Internet access in rural areas of the County. County Executive Al Buechel says Bug Tussel Wireless made some real strides in improving wireless service. He says eight towers were built and two more will be working on in the new year. Plus Bug Tussel is leasing space on three County towers. He says people in rural areas were demanding improvements in wireless service. He says the service isn’t free, but it’s comparable to what others are paying for to get wireless Internet service. Buechel says the project did take longer than expected, but there were a lot of regulatory hurdles to overcome such as local and federal permitting. In addition it took time for land purchases.

Drunken Driving Penalties Could Be Severe For First Time Offenders

Designated drivers, shared ride services and taxis could help New Year’s Eve revelers avoid putting themselves and others at risk by driving drunk. Fond du Lac Police Officer Steve Olson says the first time drunken driver usually has a blood alcohol content well above the .08 required to show intoxication. He says first offense is a civil charge, but if you have a .15 or higher blood alcohol content it could mean having an ignition interlock device installed on your vehicle. He says .15 might seem high for a first offense, but typically it’s a little higher. Olson says stiff fines and higher insurance premiums are just some of the consequences a first time drunken driver could face. He says it could be much worse if someone is injured.

NFDL Students Get Practical Experience Through Café

North Fond du Lac students will be learning about food service and getting some practical experience through a high school café. District Superintendent Aaron Sadoff says it will help students in culinary and technical education find relevance in work related to running a restaurant. He says the school board gave out a loan to Family and Consumer Educator Jill Lewinski to set up the café. He says they will be using an underutilized room for the café. Staff will be able to get sandwiches and coffee in the old sewing room during the day. He says in a year of two they will open it up to the whole community. He says local businesses and organizations donated equipment, furnishings and money to make it possible. Among those who made donations were Commonwealth Companies, John’s Refrigeration, the North Fond du Lac Optimists, Marine Credit Union and others.

FDL Salvation Army Christmas Distribution Helps 700 Families

The Fond du Lac Salvation Army’s recent Christmas distribution at the Fond du Lac County Fairgrounds brightened a lot of people’s holidays. Salvation Army Captain Steve Wilson says they got a lot of help from volunteers. He says about 100 volunteers helped with the distribution, which helped reduce the wait for those in line. He says hundreds of families, about 700, received food and toys. He says about 7 pallets of food was given away during the six hours. Wilson says grateful mothers expressed their thanks through smiles and tears. He says some of them had nothing to give to their children during Christmas. By the way the Salvation Army’s Food Pantry at 237 N. Macy Street will be serving clients today from 9 to 11:30 a.m. and 12:30 to 5 p.m. The pantry will be closed on Thursday and Friday.