July 28, 2016

Cash Stolen In Columbia County Grocery Store Break-In

 

7/28/16 – Authorities are looking for a man who broke into a Columbia County grocery store.  Surveillance cameras show a white, male suspect entered the Pardeeville Piggly Wiggly at 1am Monday.  An undisclosed amount of money was stolen from the store’s safe, and the man left around 3 am.  Piggly Wiggly was closed for an hour-and-a-half that morning while deputies investigated the scene.  The store’s phone lines were cut, and there was extensive damage to the safe.  The suspect wore all black clothing, had a camouflage backpack, and his face was covered.  The man is between 5-foot-6 and 5-foot-9 with an average build.  At least one additional suspect acted as a lookout.  Anyone with information is encouraged to contact the Columbia County law enforcement.  Contact Mike Haverley at 608-742-4166, Columbia County Crime Stoppers at 800-293-8477, or www.co.columbia.wi.us.

 

Mayville Police Car Struck In Traffic Crash, Two Taken To Hospital

 

7/28/16 -Two people were taken to the hospital with non-life threatening injuries following a two-vehicle accident involving a police car in Mayville today.  A vehicle reportedly pulled out in front of the patrol car and struck its passenger side as it was eastbound on Horicon Street.  The Mayville officer and the passenger in the other vehicle were taken to the hospital.  No names have been released, and the Dodge County Sheriff’s Department is investigating the crash.    

 

Engine Trouble Attributed To I-41 Wreck

 

7/28/16 – Dodge County Sheriff Dale Schmidt says engine troubles contributed to the crash between a pickup truck towing a travel trailer and a semi on I-41 northbound near Lomira Monday. He says the pickup had engine difficulties and was moving slowly when the semi ran into the back of the travel trailer. Five people in the pickup including four children were taken to hospitals. That included a 13-year-old who was flown to Children’s Hospital in Milwaukee. Schmidt says that teen suffered non-life threatening injuries.

 

Lomira Man Found Guilty Of Sexual Assault

 

7/28/16 – A Lomira man pled no contest yesterday to one felony count of First Degree Sexual Assault.  William Bonney used force during the May 2014 incident and ignored pleas to stop.  The victim later gave birth, and a paternity test showed Bonney to be the likely father.  The 55-year-old will be sentenced on October 19.

 

Waupun Man Pleads Not Guilty To Shooting Out Car Window

 

7/28/16 – A Waupun man accused of shooting out the window of a car that pulled into his driveway to read his political signs pled not guilty at arraignment yesterday.  Larry Bronkhorst is charged three felony counts, two of Second Degree Recklessly Endangering Safety and one of Endangering Safety with the Reckless Use of a Firearm, along with one misdemeanor.  The 78-year-old allegedly told police he was concerned the men were trying to vandalize his anti-Obama signs in the December 2014 incident.  Bronkhorst reportedly said he was trying to scare the men when he fired a shot from his shotgun at the vehicle.  The driver’s side window exploded, and the driver suffered a minor injury to his hand from the broken glass.  Bronkhorst is due back in court on September 16.  If he is convicted, the charges carry a combined maximum of over 20 years in prison.

 

Poynette Barn Destroyed By Fire

 

7/28/16 – A barn near Poynette was destroyed by fire Tuesday evening. Crews responded around 8:45pm to what was initially reported as grass fire at ABS Global Systems, a cattle breeding company northwest of Poynette on Stebbins Road. The barn contained 500 bales of straw. Forty firefighters from four departments battled the blaze. There were no injuries but several firefighters were treated at the scene for exhaustion.

 

DCSO Encouraging Residents To Keep Streets Clean

 

7/28/16 – Dodge County residents are being urged not to litter.  It’s the sheriff’s office’s ‘Law of the Month’ for July.  Sheriff Dale Schmidt says county ordinance prohibits disposing of waste on any highway, body of water, or any other public property.  Schmidt says littering has especially become a problem on side roads and DNR properties where large items are often left, such as furniture, tires, and household appliances.  Schmidt says his office is stepping up enforcement of the ordinance.  Littering brings a fine of $200 per instance.

 

Jobless Filings In Region Up From May, Down From 2015

 

7/28/16 – Jobless filings in the region were up last month compared to May but are still lower than June of last year. According to the latest statistics from the state Department of Workforce Development, both Dodge and Fond du Lac counties had an unemployment rate of four-percent last month; Dodge was up a half-percentage point from May while Fond du Lac was up seven-tenths. However, both were around a half-percentage point below last year’s rate. Columbia and Washington counties reported a 3.9-percent last month, both up six-tenths from May but lower than June of 2015; Columbia County by over a half point and Washington by a tenth. June filings in Jefferson County were two-tenths lower than last year at 4.2-percent, but six-tenths higher than May. Green Lake County’s unemployment last month was 4.7-percent, three-tenths higher than May and a half point lower than last year. Dane and Lafayette counties are the lowest in the state at 3.3-percent while Menominee County is the highest at 9.1-percent. All but two of the state’s 72 counties saw an increase in jobless filings from May to June. However, 68 counties had rates decrease or remain the same from last year. The seasonally-adjusted statewide unemployment rate was 4.2-percent, seven-tenths below the national rate.

 

Transportation Budget $939M In The Hole

 

7/28/16 – Wisconsin will need an extra 939-million dollars in the next state budget, just to match the road building and maintenance they approved in the current budget. That’s according to the non-partisan Legislative Fiscal Bureau. The higher costs have rekindled a debate over whether the state should increase revenues by implementing a gas tax or license plate fees. G-O-P Assembly finance co-chair John Nygren says the state has “kicked the can down the road long enough,” and he prefers a higher gas tax because it’s paid by visitors as well as residents. Governor Scott Walker issued a statement repeating his long opposition to tax and fee hikes. The Republican Walker says the D-O-T will need to be more efficient so the state can live within people’s means.

 

Pearl Harbor Recreation Featured At EAA AirVenture

 

7/28/16 – Some Wisconsin veterans at the attack on Pearl Harbor saw an aerial recreation of that event in an air show Wednesday at the E-A-A Air Venture in Oshkosh. Planes used in the 1970 movie “Tora Tora Tora” were featured during the air show. It brought back memories for veterans like 94-year-old Lou Conter, who said he was the only quartermaster who survived on the U-S-S Arizona on that fateful December seventh of 1941. The air show commemorated the 75th anniversary of the attack which started World War Two. The week long E-A-A Air Venture continues through Sunday at the show grounds in Oshkosh.

 

Aviation Business Park Introduced In Oshkosh

 

7/28/16 – Winnebago County and City of Oshkosh officials will introduce the new Aviation Business Park at Wittman Regional Airport today. Audra Hoy of the Greater Oshkosh Economic Development Corporation says Oshkosh is known for EAA AirVenture, but supports aviation related jobs around the year. She says Oshkosh is a big aviation town. It is projected that over the next ten years, the new park will spur over $73 million economic activity and create 250-to-500 jobs in the area.

 

Horicon Is Base Camp For Wisconsin AIDS Ride

 

7/28/16 – Participants in the Wisconsin AIDS Ride will be logging 300 miles in the area over the next four days. Kristin Wollenberg is with the Aids Resource Center of Wisconsin. She says the number of people in the state with HIV and those who don’t know they have it yet number close to 8,000. She says 6,300 have it and about 1,500 are yet to be diagnosed with it. Base camp for the bike ride is the Horicon High School. Friday riders will be traveling through parks in Campbellsport, Fond du Lac, and Brownsville.