News – November 12, 2011

Carol’s Tours Charges: ‘Robbing Peter To Pay Paul’

11/12/11 – Two Beaver Dam women face up to 20 years in prison for their role in the closure of Carol’s Tours. Owner Deborah Paul is charged with two counts of Theft in a Business Setting. Her complaint lists 194 people who paid a total of nearly $315,000 for vacations that were never arranged between May of 2007 and February of 2008. The 56-year-old Paul reportedly told investigators that she “robbed Peter to pay Paul” and even paid her personal bills through the business. Her office manager, 46-year-old Lisa Hopper is charged with Theft in a Business Setting and Fraudulent Writings. Hopper is believed to have taken as much as $90,000 from the business to pay her mortgage, credit cards and even plastic surgery. Initial appearances are scheduled in Dodge County on November 21.

The criminal complaints can be viewed here:

http://www.doj.state.wi.us/news/files/summons-complaint-paul-deborah-20111111.pdf

http://www.doj.state.wi.us/news/files/summons-complaint-hopper-lisa-20111111.pdf

Founder of Statewide News Wire Passes Away

11/12/11 – Some of Wisconsin’s top government officials are joining reporters in mourning the death of Dick Wheeler. The dean of the State Capitol’s media corps – and the long-time former owner of the statewide wire service affiliated with this radio station – died Friday at age 67. His daughter said Wheeler was getting ready to go to work, just like he did most mornings when he arrived at 5:30am at the Capitol. He reported on every session of the Legislature and its Joint Finance Committee. Governor Scott Walker said Wheeler impartially and honorably pursued the truth. Former Governor Tommy Thompson called Wheeler a legend and a longtime friend who contributed to democracy in a very meaningful way. Assembly Speaker Jeff Fitzgerald and Majority Leader Scott Suder said Wheeler was as much of an institution as the Assembly itself. He also made sure the Capitol media corps had its own dedicated press room in the statehouse. Dick Wheeler was born near Pittsburgh and studied for a year to be a Baptist minister before deciding on a long career in journalism. He worked in Ohio and Michigan before moving to Madison in 1972 to start the Wheeler Report – which eventually became an Internet resource for lobbyists, lawmakers, and reporters alike. Wheeler also worked for the Gongwer News Service, which provided state news and sports to Wisconsin radio stations. He later bought the wire and put his name on it – and he sold it to the former Goetz Broadcasting Corporation in 1998 to devote more time to the Wheeler Report. Two successors to Goetz owned the news wire until 2003, when Learfield Communications bought it. The service still carries Wheeler’s name today.

UW Green Bay Violates State Policy

11/12/11 – University of Wisconsin-Green Bay Chancellor Thomas K. Harden says the school will appeal a finding by a state agency saying it violated state policy when it rehired Tom Maki. The Department of Employee Trust Funds made the ruling public yesterday. Maki retired from his 131 thousand dollar a year vice chancellor position last March. He was rehired by the school about a month later as a limited-term employee, while continuing to draw his retirement benefit. State law says agencies can’t reach an agreement to rehire a person who is planning to retire before that person actually leaves his or her job. Harden says Maki always intended to retire, whether he was re-hired at the Green Bay school or not.

Airline Restructuring Costs Milwaukee 100 Jobs

A 120 million dollar restructuring at Frontier Airlines will result in 100 jobs being cut in Denver in the coming weeks. Next January, another 120 will be cut at Frontier’s hub in Milwaukee. An airline spokesman says most of the Denver reductions will come through attrition – not replacing people who quit, or not filling open positions. Some workers have been asked if they would willingly move from fulltime to part-time positions. Republic Airways owns Frontier. It has said it might sell Frontier when the restructuring is complete. That could be as soon as next spring. The

airline has notified the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development of the coming staff reductions in this state.

Milwaukee Police Shoot Suspected Bank Robber

Milwaukee police say convicted bank robber Shante Alford fired at officers after sticking up the Guaranty Bank in the Grand Avenue Mall yesterday afternoon. One officer returned fire, killing the 34 year old parolee. Alford had been convicted of robbing the same bank 10 years ago, serving time for that crime. He was also wanted in connection with two other recent bank robberies. A witness says he saw a man being chased by police in the mall, then heard shooting and yelling. The Milwaukee police officer who fired the fatal shot has been placed on administrative duty while the incident is investigated.

Man Accused of Being Drunk For OWI Hearing

11/12/11 – Authorities said a 50-year-old Dane County man was given a second O-W-I charge Friday, for driving drunk to a court appearance on his first charge. Officials said a court bailiff smelled alcohol on Russell Lambert’s breath when he arrived. Police later found that his blood alcohol level was point-28 – three-and-a-half times the legal limit for intoxication. Lambert’s court appearance was connected with an O-W-I arrest October 22nd, in which his blood alcohol level was higher than point-15. He pleaded innocent to that charge, and another hearing in that case was set for December ninth.