News – March 23, 2016

Sex Offender Placement Delayed With House Off Market

 

3/23/16 – Convicted Chapter 980 Sex Offender Jonathan Miller will not be placed in Reeseville at this time.  That is because a house at N1701 Neuberger Road in the Town of Lowell is no longer on the market.  On March 10, Dodge County Circuit Court Judge Joseph Sciascia ordered Chapter 980 Offender Robert Larson Jr. be placed at that residence.  The Wisconsin Department of Health Services has since notified the county that it was unable to complete the purchase.  Yesterday, the courtroom for Miller’s hearing was packed with concerned residents who were unhappy with the potential placement.  While the Neuberger Road property is at least 1,500 feet away from any residence with children as state statute requires, 22 children live at least part-time roughly 2,000 feet away.  Miller and Larson Jr. had their previous placement in Brownsville rescinded last year after it was learned the house was next door to two children.  Yesterday, Dodge County Circuit Court Judge Brian Pfitzinger ordered the county’s Human Services and Health department to look into suitable housing for Miller and set another hearing for May 6.  When Larson Jr. was placed, Sheriff Dale Schmidt said it was a poor choice given the number of children in the area and the distance from full-time law enforcement.  Schmidt says he does not view the Brownsville placement and attempted Reeseville placement as failures since they led to new state legislation championed by Beaver Dam Representative Mark Born and Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald of Juneau that requires the offenders not be within 1,500 feet of children.  While it is not his decision on where they are placed, Schmidt says he will try to work with Human Services and Health to find the best possible location.  If the Reeseville property is put back on the market, Schmidt told residents it could again be pursued.  Schmidt says he is disappointed in Judge Pfitzinger’s order that law enforcement not disclose the addresses of potential placement houses to the public.  The sheriff says the public played a key role in the Brownsville and Reeseville outcomes.  Schmidt says his department will increase patrol in whatever municipality the two are placed.  With the Reeseville property off the table at this time, Larson Jr. has another hearing set for March 28.

 

Born Says Litscher Right Choice For Corrections

 

3/23/16 – State Representative Mark Born says the new head of the Wisconsin Department of Corrections has the qualifications to address issues in the troubled agency. Born, a Republican from Beaver Dam, spend several years on the Beaver Dam Common Council with Jon Litscher, who was confirmed as the Corrections Secretary by the state senate last week. Litscher, who is the president of the Beaver Dam Common Council, was brought in to replace Ed Wall. The change in the agency’s leadership comes amid state and federal probes at the Lincoln Hills youth detention facility in Irma that could lead to criminal charges. Born told us on WBEV’s Community Comment that Litscher was an excellent choice by the governor and will bring a lot to the position at a time when there are a lot of challenges. The scandal at the youth jail is not the only issue facing Litscher as staffing issues continue to be a problem at adult prisons across Wisconsin. Born says, generally speaking, the legislature will have to do something comprehensive to address the staffing problem possibly involving wage structures and work rules. He notes that the legislature will not be in session again until next January. In that time, he anticipates that the corrections department’s new administrative staff will use the tools already available to address issues. Litscher previously served as corrections chief under G-O-P governors Tommy Thompson and Scott McCallum.

 

DOJ Asking High Court To Reverse Abortion Ruling

 

3/23/16 – Wisconsin Department of Justice attorneys have asked the U-S Supreme Court to reverse an appeals court which struck down this state’s law requiring abortion providers to have admitting privileges at nearby hospitals.  They want the high court to rule the 7th U-S Circuit Court of Appeals was wrong when it determined the 2013 law is unconstitutional.  The justices may wait until they have ruled on a similar Texas law before making a decision affecting Wisconsin.  Planned Parenthood and Affiliated Medical Services argue the law is an unconstitutional restriction on abortions.

 

Beaver Dam Man Pulls Gun On Neighbor

 

3/23/16 – A Beaver Dam man was taken to the Dodge County Jail after pulling a gun on his neighbor during an argument. The incident was reported around 8:30am Monday morning on the 600 block of North University Avenue. The 21-year-old was taken into custody on a probation hold and is facing charges of Disorderly Conduct.

 

DCSO Warning Against Online Scam

 

3/23/16 – The Dodge County Sheriff’s Office is warning residents of a new online scam.  The phishing scam, which attacks computers and phones via email, appears to be from Turbo Tax.  The email asks recipients to click on a link to ‘opt out’ of sharing personal information with others.  Following the link downloads key logger malware which leads to identity theft.  When in doubt, the sheriff’s office advises not to click on a questionable link.  Over 40-million people have fallen victim to this scam.

 

Trucker Gets Stuck On Waupun Railroad Tracks

 

3/23/16 – A trucker from Alberta, Canada found out the hard way that trucks should be sticking to the approved detours in Waupun during reconstruction of Main Street or Highway 49. Police Chief Dale Heeringa says the trucker tried to take a shortcut on Jefferson Street and the semi and flatbed trailer got hung up on the tracks of a railroad crossing. It took about an hour and a half for a wrecker to remove the truck and officials from Wisconsin and Southern Railroad to inspect the tracks for damage.

 

Mom Attacks School Staff Over Sick Kid

 

3/23/16 – Witnesses say a mother wasn’t taking no for an answer — and that’s why she attacked the school director at Pewaukee Lake Montessori Academy.  Jessica Uriniuk got mad when she was told she couldn’t leave her sick child at school.  Academy director Antonietta Schneider says the mom bit her arm, scraped her face, started hitting her and then kicked her at least twice.  Schneider had to be treated at a hospital for internal bruising.  Uriniuk has been charged with battery and disorderly conduct.

 

Dodge County Home Sales Up, Median Price Down

 

3/23/16 – Wisconsin Realtors continue to sell more homes, at a time when national sales are falling. The state Realtors Association says its members sold four-point-one percent more existing houses in February, even though the national Realtors group reports a seasonally-adjusted decrease of more than seven-percent for last month. The Wisconsin group reports almost 37-hundred home sales for February, with an average selling price of 146-thousand-800-dollars — which is almost seven-percent higher than the previous February. Realtors say the higher prices are due to a 12-percent drop in the total numbers of homes on the market. There were three more homes sold in Dodge County this year than the 46 sold in February of last year but the median price was down 24-percent to $110-thousand dollars. Columbia County sold four more homes than last February’s 35 while its median sales price rose two-percent to $159-thousand dollars. There were eight fewer houses sold in Jefferson County last month compared to the 71 sold last year but the selling price was up five-percent to $155-thousand dollars. Fond du Lac County had three less homes sold compared to the 56 sold in February of last year but the average price tag increased 16-percent to $104-thousand dollars.

 

Beaver Dam Aldermanic Candidates On Community Comment

 

3/23/16 – The two candidates in the city of Beaver Dam’s only contested aldermanic race will discuss the issues with is this afternoon on WBEV’s Community Comment. Dan Doyle is challenging longtime incumbent Donna Maly for the Ward 12 seat. Community Comment airs weekdays on AM1430 beginning at 12:35pm.