Local News Monday 6/17/13

Free Spirit Riders Program Recovers After Dog Attack

 

The Executive Director of Free S.P.I.R.I.T Riders says it will take them more than a month to get back to normal after a pit bull attacked several of their horses last Monday. Mary Narges says a pit bull dragging a lease came on their property east of Fond du Lac and attacked very quickly. She says it first attacked a horse that had been donated to their program, then crept under fencing to attack more horses out in their pastures. She says four horses needed stitches and will survive. She says 3 veterinarians from Waupun Veterinarian Services did a wonderful job. She says they are notifying people about classes, but they won’t be offering their normal class schedule for awhile. As for the dog it died after several horses retaliated. Testing determined the dog didn’t have rabies. A 35-year-old Fond du Lac County man was cited for letting the dog run loose. Those who would like to help out Free S.P.I.R.I.T. Riders can mail donations to P.O. Box 1291, Fond du Lac, WI 54936-1291. Free S.P.I.R.I.T Riders is a therapeutic horsemanship program for those with cognitive and physical disabilities.

 

Paape Jury Selected, Trial Starts Today

 

(WHBL-Sheboygan)-It took most of Friday morning to select a jury to hearing the case of a 14 year old Sheboygan boy charged in a brutal murder. Nathan Paape will go on trial beginning today for his alleged part in the murder of 78-year-old Barbara Olsen in her Sheboygan Falls home last September.  Twelve jurors and two alternates, including just 3 women, were chosen to hear the case in a trial which is expected to last all week. Paape and 14-year-old Antonio Barbeau are charged with first degree murder and face life sentences.  Barbeau has already pleaded no contest and will be sentenced in August.  He is expected to testify against Paape during this week’s trial, which begins with opening statements today.

 

Sheboygan Men Facing Drug Charges In Manitowoc County

 

(WHBL-Sheboygan)-Three Sheboygan men are scheduled to make initial appearances in Manitowoc County court following an eight month cocaine investigation.  Lieutenant Dave Remiker says beginning in December of last year, investigators identified a group involved in a large scale cocaine trafficking operation in Manitowoc and Sheboygan Counties. Remiker says investigators arranged for the sale of a half-kilo of cocaine from one of the subjects in Sheboygan County Thursday.  All three arrived at the location and were taken into custody.  Over a half-kilo of cocaine was found in a vehicle brought by one of the subjects. A total of six controlled deliveries of cocaine took place in the Village of Cleveland and city of Sheboygan over the course of the investigation, netting approximately two-kilos of cocaine with an estimated street value of $65,000.

 

FDL City Councilman Hope Trial Period Works Out

 

Fond du Lac City Councilman Rob Vande Zande says he hopes a trial period allowing BMX bikers to use the Skate Board Park will work out. He says it will be carefully monitored with an increased police presence and a fixed camera on the park. He worked to get a fence put in the park to reduce the altercations between BMX bikers and Skate Boarders when only skate boarding was allowed in the park. Vande Zande says even as the request for a trial period was working its way before the City Council there were bikers who ignored the signs prohibiting them to use the park. He says even though he initially was against the trial period he’s hoping for its success. The trial period at Adelaide Park runs through Labor Day.

 

EAA AirVenture Pays The Fee

 

(Wisconsin Radio Network)-Officials with AirVenture in Oshkosh will pay the F-A-A nearly $450,000 to ensure there are air traffic controllers on hand during the annual experimental aircraft show this summer. Spokesman Dick Knapinski says the clock was ticking, so they signed a one-time agreement. He says they gave a thought to a lot of options, but they were running out of time and they needed to do something to make sure they were going to have air traffic control services for AirVenture. E-A-A officials included a letter with the contract that states they signed the deal under protest. Knapinski says they will continue to work with federal lawmakers on the issue.

 

Lomira School District Becomes Part Of Health Care Consortium

 

Starting in July the Lomira School District will join six others area school districts in a health care consortium. Lomira School District Administrator Bob Lloyd says they actually teamed up with the smaller Herman School District this year in a consortium to save on health care costs. On July 1st they will join a health care consortium consisting of seven school districts with option to expand the consortium in the future. Some of the other current members include Mayville, Horicon and Rubicon. He says they’ve already realized a savings on health insurance premium costs of 5 percent just by joining the health care consortium. Lloyd says the goal is to reduce their health care costs and still provide high quality health care.

 

Lawn Mower Injuries A Concern

 

The Director of the Trauma Center at Theda Clark Medical Center in Neenah is asking people to play it safe around riding lawnmowers. Dr. Ray Georgen says he’s especially concerned for the safety of young children who may not be aware of the danger. He says if you’re operating a mower or riding lawnmower also be aware of your surroundings because rocks and stick can go through a mower at speeds of 100 to 200 miles per hour. Dr. Georgen says a young child shouldn’t be allowed to play around an operating riding mower or be a passenger on one. Some tips he offers include not backing up and making sure the mower is offer when you are cleaning compacted grass from it. Nationally 80,000 to 90,000 people each year go to the Emergency Room as a result of lawn mower injuries.

 

Work At Home Scam Stuffing Envelopes

 

(Wisconsin Radio Network)-A warning for Wisconsin residents being offered a job that allows them to work from home. The state Department of Agriculture, Trade, and Consumer Protection says it has received several reports from people who have been offered jobs that promise big rewards for simply stuffing envelopes and mailing them out. They are promised about $10 for each envelop they stuff and mail out on the company’s behalf. There’s an additional mailing some receive promising $20 for each booklet they compile, staple and mail out. However, DATCP’s Jerad Albracht says reading the fine print from the New Jersey-based company’s ad shows it’s not that simple. You only get the $10 if it leads to a sale of whatever the piece you’re mailing out advertises that leads to a sale. Possible employees could also be asked to front some of the cash for materials and shipping costs, so the job could actually end up costing them money. Albracht says anyone receiving these work from home offers should just throw them away.

 

Section Of West Division Street Closed For Wells Manufacturing Move

 

West Division Street in Fond du Lac will be closed to through traffic between Brooke Street and Gould Street today through Friday due to the relocation of the Well’s Manufacturing facilities. Semitrailers will be parked on Division Street between 7 a.m. and 4 p.m. loading heavy equipment for transportation to the new location on Rolling Meadows Drive. The street will reopen to regular traffic each evening after 4 p.m.  

 

Petri, Ribble Introduce Hwy 41 Truck Legislation

 

Legislation recently introduced by Congressmen Tom Petri and Reid Ribble would grandfather in trucks weighing over 80,000 pounds that currently operate on Highway 41 when it becomes Interstate 41. Under federal law trucks with a gross vehicle weight of over 80,000 pounds aren’t permitted to operate on Interstate highways. Congressman Petri says, “Highway 41 is the economic lifeline of the Fox Valley.” He says, “All kinds of trucks use Highway 41 to transport timber, scrap materials, and agriculture products throughout our state, and these goods and products are often sent across the country using this roadway.” Highway 41 is set to officially be designated an Interstate highway as early as next year.

 

Where Have All The Sisters Gone?

 

Sister Joann Sambs, the general superior for the Congregation of the Sisters of St. Agnes, will be the guest speaker at the Byron Historical Society meeting tonight. The meeting is at 7 p.m. at the Byron Town Hall. The event is open to the public. Sister Sambs presentation entitled Where Have All the Sisters Gone? will recount the beginnings of the congregation in 1858 and offer stories that capture the vision of its original founders. The presentation will provide an overview of the congregation’s impact in the Fond du Lac area community and describe the life and mission of the Sisters of St. Agnes today.