Juror Excused In Henry Trial
5/13/10 – A juror was excused yesterday (Wed) in the murder trial of Larry Randall Henry. The juror told the court that he fell asleep during testimony Tuesday and Judge Andrew Bissonnette replaced the juror with an alternate. The 47-year-old Henry is accused of bludgeoning his wife to death with a metal pipe last July. Day four of the trial resumes this morning at the Dodge County courthouse in Juneau.
HPD Seeks Witness In Fatality
5/13/10 – The Horicon Police Department is looking for a second vehicle that was at the scene of Tuesday’s fatal pedestrian accident. Police Lt. Adrian Bump says it is described as a newer-model black minivan. Bump says eyewitnesses saw Richard Karel of Horicon crossing Lake Street at Vine with the green light at 4:15pm. Bump says officers arrived one scene within one minute of the accident and found Karel deceased. The Horicon Police Department is conducting a full accident reconstruction and death investigation with assistance from the Dodge County Sheriffs Department. Anyone with information is asked to contact the Horicon Police Department. (485-3555)
Lomira PD Joins ICAC
5/13/10 – Jefferson County and the Village of Lomira have joined the state Attorney General’s ‘Internet Crimes Against Children’ Task Force. JB Van Hollen says the additions push the number of partnering agencies past 150. He says each affiliate is eligible to tap into a variety of resources, including reimbursement to help fund computer hardware and software, priority for training, investigative assistance and access to forensic computer analysts throughout the state. Van Hollen told us on WBEV’s Community Comment this week that there are over 22,000 internet protocol addresses in Wisconsin containing and offering to distribute known images of child pornography. That’s why he says it’s important for local police department to work together. The Task Force has been in existence for 11 years and in that time, members have arrested 728 suspects, executed 1017 search warrants, and rescued countless numbers of children throughout the state.
Sentencing In Oshkosh Military Murder
5/13/10 – An Army specialist has been sentenced to 20 years in a military prison for killing a fellow soldier from Oshkosh – and the victim’s mother is not happy about that. Terri Schlack says Armando Baca should stay behind bars for life. Prosecutors said 30-year-old Specialist Ryan Schlack was breaking up a disturbance at an outdoor party at Fort Hood Texas when Baca shot him last July. Baca will serve his prison time at Fort Leavenworth in Kansas. Both the shooter and the victim were members of the First Cavalry Division – and they had just returned from Iraq when the incident took place. Schlack had served two tours of duty in Iraq. And his family had said he decided against a third tour in order to return to school to get a degree in electrical engineering.
Insurance Extended For Firefighter Families
5/13//10 – The spouses and children of fire-fighters who are killed in the line-of-duty will no longer worry about where their health insurance will come from. Governor Jim Doyle signed a bill today that requires local governments to pay health premiums for surviving spouses, and their children up to 27 years old. Doyle was surrounded by fire-fighters when he signed the bill this morning at a training facility in Madison. The governor also signed a bill that bars employers from discriminating against workers who don’t go to political or religious meetings held by their bosses.
Doyle Strengthens Smoking Ban
5/13/10 – Governor Jim Doyle says that Wisconsin will have a strong public indoor smoking ban, despite the fact that it allows for open-air smoking rooms. Doyle signed a bill this week that seeks to clarify what the smoking rooms can be made of. In general, they’ll need to have open windows that cover at least a quarter of the wall space. The indoor smoking ban takes effect July fifth in all Wisconsin workplaces, including bars and restaurants. One attorney said the new law has a loophole in which tavern owners could allow smoking inside their bars by having large open windows in all the right places. But Doyle and the Tavern League do not believe that will happen. The governor says smoking will only occur in outdoor structures with mainly open walls.
Outdoor Expo Opens
5/13/10 – The Fifth Annual Wisconsin Outdoor Education Expo gets underway today at the Dodge County Fairgrounds. The Expo’s Executive Director Dan Gunderson says over 3500 fourth and fifth graders, teachers and volunteers from around the state will attend the event. He says the Expo provides children with outdoor-related learning and participation opportunities intended to teach outdoors skills, encourage ethical behavior and perpetuate the state’s hunting, fishing and conservation heritage. The Expo has eight main areas, or camps’, including one’s focusing on archery, fishing and firearm safety. Since 2006, attendance at the expo has topped over 21,000 people. More information is available at www.wisexpo.com.
Vehicle Purchases Up
5/13/10 – Wisconsinites bought more new vehicles last month than they did a year ago. The Automobile Dealers Association of Mega Milwaukee said there were almost 15-thousand-500 registrations of new cars and light trucks statewide in April. That’s over 11-hundred more than in April of 2009. Vehicle sales were up slightly in the Milwaukee metro area. Dealers’ association president Jim Tolkan said about 47-hundred new vehicles were registered last month in Milwaukee, Waukesha, Ozaukee, and Washington counties. That’s 18 more than the previous April. Tolkan says buyers are being encouraged by incentives on financing and cash-back – and they’ll continue at least through this month. He says dealers are looking for much bigger sales in May, June, and July. Tolkan said those sales were “horrific” a year ago – and it resulted in the federal government’s “Cash for Clunkers” program.
Obstruction Charges Follow False Filing
A 20-year-old man is facing charges of obstruction of justice after filing a false report with the Dodge County Sheriff’s Department. Authorities say the man called last night to report that while he was driving on Highway 60 an acquaintance had thrown a rock at his car. He told them when he pulled over he and the man got into a fight. He added that when he got back into his car and started driving away the other driver threw another rock, which damaged his car. There were a number of inconsistencies in his story but the biggest one was the man he accused of doing the deed was in jail at the time. It turns out the man actually missed his turn, drove the vehicle into a ditch and struck a pole
