Green Bay News

WAUPACA – A woman charged with killing her boyfriend pleaded not guilty Tuesday.

No trial date has been set for Alison Roe in connection with the stabbing death of Craig Dake, according to the Waupaca County Clerk of Courts office.

Roe allegedly stabbed Dake at a Fremont apartment March 6. According to the criminal complaint, the two argued before she stabbed him.

If convicted of first-degree intentional homicide, she would be sentenced to life in prison.

MADISON (AP) – A new state law is taking effect that greatly expands the collection of DNA samples by law enforcement officials.

Beginning Wednesday, local police will be required to take DNA from anyone arrested for a violent felony and send the sample to the Wisconsin Department of Justice. The agency won’t process the samples until a judge finds probable cause that a crime was committed.

Previously, DNA samples were taken only from convicted felons and sex offenders.

The DOJ expanded its Madison crime lab and hired more staff to handle tens of thousands of additional samples. The agency already collects about 12,000 DNA samples from convicted felons annually. It expects to receive 25,000 samples from felony arrests and 43,000 samples from misdemeanor convictions this year because of the new law.

KANKAKEE, Ill. (AP) – A convicted murderer awaiting sentencing has escaped from a jail in eastern Illinois after overpowering a guard and taking his keys, uniform and SUV.

The Kankakee County Sheriff’s Office says Kamron T. Taylor fled from the Jerome Combs Detention Center at about 3 a.m. Wednesday.

Chief Deputy Ken McCabe says Taylor is considered armed and dangerous.

He fled in the correctional officer’s brown Chevrolet Equinox.

SUAMICO – We visited the bobcat at the NEW Zoo on Wednesday morning.

Neil Anderson also gave us the details on this year’s EggStravaganZoo.

The main event is the egg hunt from 9 a.m. until 2 p.m. on Saturday, April 4.

Good Day Wisconsin will be there live.

GREEN BAY – Take your standard oatmeal and make it special by using this recipe from Sharon Peterson of 136 Restaurant and Wine Bar in Sturgeon Bay. It’s oatmeal – Door County style!

Baked Oatmeal with Rhubarb Purée & Orange Vanilla Sauce

Oatmeal:

1/2 cup canola oil 1/2 cup walnut oil 1 1/4 cup sugar 4 eggs 2 tbs cinnamon 1 tbs Nielsen-Massey vanilla 1 tbs Meyers Rum 1 tbs Gran Marnier 1 1/2 tsp salt 1 cup milk 1 1/4 cup cream 6 cups oatmeal – not quick cook or instant *combine all ingredients in stand mixer with paddle attachment & mix thoroughly on low speed *pour mixture in greased 9×13 glass pan *cover with plastic wrap & refrigerate overnight *bake uncovered @350 for 30 minutes Orange Vanilla Creme: 2 cups sour cream 1 tbs Nielsen-Massey vanilla bean paste 2 tbs Door County maple syrup 1 tbs Gran Marnier 1 tbs orange zest 1 tbs cream 1/3 cup sugar *blend all ingredients in blender for 15-30 seconds Rhubarb Sauce 4 cups sliced rhubarb 1/3 cup Gran Marnier 1/2 cup water 1/2 cup sugar *cook all ingredients in covered saucepan on medium for 15 minutes-until rhubarb is soft *blend cooked ingredients in blender with 1 tbs lime zest for 15-30 seconds-until smooth

 

MADISON, Wis. (AP) – State education officials say more Wisconsin high school graduates are taking Advanced Placement exams and earning scores high enough for college credit.

The Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction’s annual report on AP exam participation shows 34 percent of graduating seniors in 2014 took at least one exam. That’s up from 19 percent of graduates a decade ago.

Twenty-four percent of those taking the exam earned at least a 3 on a 1 through 5 ranking. Colleges usually accept AP exam scores of 3 or higher for credit. In 2004, 13 percent of test-takers earned a 3 or better.

The Journal Sentinel (http://bit.ly/1BLRnsh ) reports the overall exam participation rate in Wisconsin is 33.6 percent, slightly below the national average of 35.7 percent.

GREEN BAY – Next to the chocolate bunnies and jelly beans, why not nestle a book into the Easter basket this year?  Librarian Karin Adams of the Brown County Library shared four books for spring that your kids might want to check out.

Old Bear by Kevin Henkes.

A Wonderful Year by Nick Bruel

Whose Egg is This? by Lisa Amstutz

The Penderwicks in Spring by Jeanne Birdsall

You can find these books in various formats at the Brown County Library.  You can find this, and previous Good Day Reads lists, by clicking here.

 

 

MILWAUKEE (AP) – An 18-year-old Milwaukee man has been identified as a suspect in a fatal shooting at a house party.

The man was arrested last week while driving a stolen car. He was charged in an unrelated shooting during an armed robbery in mid-March.

Police also have identified the man as a suspect in the killing of 19-year-old Ericka Walker. She was fatally shot March 7 during an argument at a house party on Milwaukee’s north side.

A search warrant affidavit filed Monday says witnesses of the shooting identified the man in a photo lineup as the person who fired the gun.

A police spokesman said Tuesday that the case has been referred to the Milwaukee County district attorney’s office.

GREEN BAY- The next couple of days will be mild, but things are getting cooler for the weekend.

Saturday’s high will be about 48 degrees with brisk west winds.

We may see a mix of precipitation or even snow on Easter Sunday. Temperatures in the morning will be in the mid 20s. Highs will be near 38 degrees.

GREEN BAY – We have some helpful tips if you are looking to sell your home this year!

Adam Adler is a Senior Broker Associate with Coldwell Banker and joined FOX 11’s Emily Deem on Good Day Wisconsin to share some Dos and Don’ts when it comes to selling your home.

Click here to learn more about Coldwell Banker.

Living/Family Room Don’ts:
Large Furniture that takes up a lot of space
Too much furniture
No family/personal photos
Too many knickknacks
Get rid of the clutter
Get rid of the dated light fixtures

Bedroom/Bathroom Don’ts:
Don’t have unneeded furniture pieces
Don’t have furniture close off a room like a dresser right next to the entry door
Don’t have bright taste specific paint colors – go with neutral colors
No family/personal photos
Organize and store any toys
Don’t over decorate, don’t need a lot of photos/art/decorations on the walls
Don’t hide all of the mess in closet, if buyers like a house they will look to see how big the closets are

Don’t leave the makeup, hair dryers, curling irons, beard trimmers out
Don’t leave the toilet seats up
Don’t leave garbage cans out in the open
Don’t leave any used bath towels, wash clothes, cleaning supplies, robes sitting out

Kitchen Don’ts:
Clutter on counter tops, coffee maker, toaster,
Refrigerators filled with magnets, calendars, post-it notes, kids school projects
Garbage cans out in the open
Dirty appliances – clean inside and out, especially if the appliances are included with the house
Unorganized/overstocked pantry and cabinets – clean out what’s not being used
Don’t leave any pet water or food containers

Outside Dos – Spruce up that curb appeal:
Cut/Weed/Fertilize Lawn
Trim Bushes/Shrubs/Trees
Paint – common areas that need paint – Front Railings/Exterior Trim/storage sheds
Stain/Seal wood decks, Clean composite style decks
Clean Gutters
Restore faded vinyl shutters – they make various wipe on products that bring back the color
Clean Siding

DO:

Declutter
Organize
Depersonalize
Neutralize colors
Clean, Clean, Clean – general cleaning, plus deeper cleaning as needed – clean carpets, tiled floor and grout, wash windows, hand prints off appliances, clean around light switches, clean around door handles, get rid of any bathroom mildew
Repair and Replace – little fixes like fixing nail holes, caulking around bath tub surrounds and counter tops, light fixtures are generally an inexpensive update, kitchen cabinet handles

TOKYO (AP) – The world’s oldest person, a Japanese woman, died Wednesday, a few weeks after celebrating her 117th birthday.

Misao Okawa died of heart failure and stopped breathing as relatives and nursing home workers stood by her side and praised her for achieving a long, healthy life, said Tomohiro Okada, an official at her Osaka nursing home.

“She went so peacefully, as if she had just fallen asleep,” Okada said. “We miss her a lot.”

A 116-year-old American woman, Gertrude Weaver of Arkansas, is now the world’s oldest person, according to Los Angeles-based Gerontology Research Group, which keeps records of supercentenarians. She was born July 4, 1898.

Okawa, born in Osaka on March 5, 1898, was recognized as the world’s oldest person by Guinness World Records in 2013.

She lost her appetite about 10 days ago. Until then, she had been eating well, enjoying her daily cup of coffee and her favorite dishes, including ramen, Okada said.

Okawa, the daughter of a kimono maker, said at her recent birthday celebration that her life seemed rather short. Asked for the secret of her longevity, she responded nonchalantly, “I wonder about that too.”

She married her husband, Yukio, in 1919, and they had two daughters and a son. She was survived by four grandchildren and six great-grandchildren. Her husband died in 1931.

Japan’s oldest person is now a 115-year-old Tokyo woman, according to the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare. The name of the woman, who was born March 15, 1900, was not released at the request of her family, the ministry said.

Japan has the most centenarians in the world, with more than 58,000, according to the government. About 87 percent of them are women.

LOS ANGELES (AP) – Joni Mitchell was in intensive care in a Los Angeles-area hospital on Tuesday, according to the Twitter account and website of the folk singer and Rock and Roll Hall of Famer.

“Joni was found unconscious in her home this afternoon,” said a statement on the Mitchell website. “She is currently in intensive care undergoing tests and is awake and in good spirits.”

It wasn’t immediately clear what illness she had.

Los Angeles fire officials said paramedics answered an afternoon 911 call in Bel Air, where Mitchell lives, and took a patient to the hospital. But they could not verify her identity or give details on her condition.

The 71-year-old singer-songwriter told Billboard magazine in December that she has a rare skin condition, Morgellons disease, which prevents her from performing. Still, she released a career-spanning four-disc box set last year and appeared at Clive Davis’ annual pre-Grammy party in February.

Mitchell has received eight Grammy Awards, including a lifetime achievement award in 2002. She was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1997.

She started her career as a street musician in her native Canada before moving to Southern California, where she became part of the flourishing folk scene in the late 1960s. Her second album, “Clouds,” was a breakthrough with such songs as “Both Sides Now” and “Chelsea Morning,” winning Mitchell the Grammy for best folk performance. Her 1970 album, “Ladies of the Canyon,” featured the hit single “Big Yellow Taxi” and the era-defining “Woodstock.” The following year, she released “Blue,” which ranks 30th on Rolling Stone magazine’s list of the “500 Greatest Albums of All Time.”

Mitchell has released 19 original albums, the most recent in 2007. The anthology released last year, “Love Has Many Faces: A Quartet, A Ballet, Waiting to Be Danced,” features remastered versions of 53 of her songs.

Her musical style integrates folk and jazz elements, and she counts jazz giants Charles Mingus and Pat Metheny among her past collaborators.

As with music, Mitchell taught herself painting as a child and has produced hundreds of works in ink, watercolor and acrylic.

MADISON- The Wisconsin Men’s Basketball team is getting ready to head to Indianapolis.

The Badgers will get a sendoff during a pep rally Wednesday night at the Kohl Center.

The Badgers play the undefeated Kentucky Wildcats on Saturday night in the national semi-finals.

It’s a rematch of last year’s loss for the Badgers in the Final Four.

Ingredients:
8 eggs
1 ½ cups frozen corn
¼ cup heavy cream or half and half
1 small can sliced black olives, drained
1 can (4 ounces) diced green chilies
2 cups shredded Cheddar or Mexican mix cheese
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro (optional)
Salsa and Sour Cream (optional)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Beat the eggs in a large bowl. Add remaining ingredients. Stir together and pour into glass pie pan. Bake for 50-60 minutes. Serve with some fresh cilantro op top and salsa and sour cream on the side.

MENASHA – For some people the sight of ice shoves along the shoreline is one they’ve seen all their lives.

“It came within ten feet of our house one year and as kids we thought, ‘oh! This is the best!’ You know?” said Mary Jensen.

For others, the appearance of ice shoves is something new and exciting.

“I’ve lived in Appleton my whole life and I’ve never actually seen the ice shoves. I’ve seen pictures of them. So for me to see this, it’s pretty cool,” said Debra Kahler.

Regardless of whether the sight is old or new, most people agree, ice shoves are a sight worth seeing.

“I think they’re beautiful,” said Neil Braun.

“It’s always beautiful, but it’s dangerous too,” added Jensen.

The shoves can make trouble for property along the shoreline.

“It does damage to trees and, oh docks, a friend of ours had their dock simply destroyed last year,” Jensen explained.

This year we didn’t see much damage along Doty Island in Menasha, but the ice is still moving and changing.

The people we spoke with said the ice shoves here on Doty Island were about twice the size only a few days ago.”

“They were about as tall as I, over my head,” said Kahler.

And as the ice breaks up you can hear all sorts of sounds from low booms and rumbles to a clinking or ringing.

“It makes some nice music,” said Kahler, Mother Nature’s music, a sign the weather is changing.

“It’s wonderful. It’s spring. We’ve been waiting,” she said.

“It’ll be nice…it’ll be warmer!” exclaimed Braun, laughing.

WASHINGTON (AP) – U.S. home prices rose at a steady pace in January, pushing prices up at a faster pace than wages and putting more homes financially out of reach for would-be buyers.

The Standard & Poor’s/Case-Shiller 20-city home price index rose 4.6 percent in January compared with 12 months earlier, S&P said Tuesday. That is up from growth of 4.4 percent in December.

Few Americans have listed their homes for sale, and the tight supply has kept prices higher. The increases have eclipsed earnings, making it more difficult for buyers to save for a down payment and afford a monthly mortgage. The modest wage gains have diminished the boost that robust hiring and low mortgage rates should provide the housing market during the spring buying season.

“Home prices are rising roughly twice as fast as wages, putting pressure on potential homebuyers and heightening the risk that any uptick in interest rates could be a major setback,” said David Blitzer, chairman of the index committee for S&P Dow Jones Indices

The Case-Shiller index covers roughly half of U.S. homes. The index measures prices compared with those in January 2000 and creates a three-month moving average. The January figures are the latest available.

Housing inventories have been tight since December. The number of homes for sale in February was equal to just 4.6 months of sales, compared to an average of 5.2 months last year. Six months of supply is typical for a healthy housing market.

All 20 cities reported higher prices than a year earlier. Denver reported the largest gains, with prices up 8.4 percent. Miami prices jumped by 8.3 percent, while Dallas homes appreciated at 8.1 percent. Home appreciation nearly plateaued in Washington, DC, where prices rose just 1.3 percent.

Signed contracts in February suggest that sales will rebound after a sluggish start to 2015, when sales were running below last year’s relatively pace.

The number of signed contracts rose 3.1 percent last month, which should be reflected by more sales being completed in March and April, according to the National Association of Realtors.

A new housing indicator by the insurer Nationwide suggests that the housing market was stable at the end of 2014. That index released Tuesday said the housing market is at its healthiest level since 2001, with few regional markets at risk of a downturn.

Based on employment, demographics, mortgages and home prices, the index found the healthiest markets to be in Pittsburgh, Cleveland and Philadelphia metro areas.

Historically low mortgage rates and solid hiring have laid the foundation for stronger sales this year.

Average 30-year fixed rates were 3.69 percent last week, according to the mortgage giant Freddie Mac. The average has plummeted from a 52-week high of 4.41 percent, making it cheaper for would-be homeowners to buy.

Separately, employers have added 3.3 million jobs over the past 12 months, including 295,000 jobs in February. The hiring spree pace has caused the unemployment rate to drop to 5.5 percent from 6.7 percent. As more people in the economy hold jobs, more paychecks exist to fund home purchases.

MILWAUKEE (AP) – The City of Milwaukee is proposing paying $6.5 million to a man wrongly convicted of a 1995 murder.

The city attorney on Tuesday filed a proposed settlement to a federal civil rights lawsuit filed by Chaunte Ott. Ott spent 13 years in prison before DNA linked the case to a convicted serial killer.

In a statement, the city says lawsuits based on events that happened nearly two decades ago “present hurdles that make defending such cases exceptionally difficult.”

Ott filed his lawsuit after his release in 2009. He claimed that Milwaukee police detectives pressured witnesses into testifying falsely that they had been with Ott during the murder of 16-year-old runaway Jessica Payne.

Ott’s attorney tells the Journal Sentinel (http://bit.ly/1Ik84jm ) that his client appreciates “the City’s agreement to provide fair compensation.”

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A watchdog group is accusing four potential 2016 presidential candidates of skirting federal campaign finance rules while traveling and raising money as if they were off and running.

In complaints filed with the Federal Election Commission on Tuesday, the Campaign Legal Center says Florida Republican Jeb Bush, Maryland Democrat Martin O’Malley, Pennsylvania Republican Rick Santorum and Wisconsin Republican Scott Walker are raising money and campaigning for the presidency without incorporating presidential campaigns. Once such incorporated organizations exist, would-be candidates must comply with fundraising limits and disclosure rules.

Given the political structure of the FEC, it is unlikely any of the political figures would face penalties over the complaints.

Of the roughly 20 Democrats and Republicans weighing campaigns, only Republican Texas Sen. Ted Cruz has announced his candidacy. Cruz declared his candidacy last week, after traveling to early voting states for more than a year. Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., has formed a political committee that would have to disclose his finances should he decide to become a candidate.

Bush and O’Malley aides said they were complying with the rules. Santorum and Walker aides did not reply immediately to requests for comment.

Paul S. Ryan, senior counsel for the legal center, said public denials by politicians that they are actual candidates “does not exempt these presidential hopefuls from federal election laws passed by Congress to keep the White House off the auction block.”

Michael Malbin of the Campaign Finance Institute said, in his view, the complaints are unlikely to win the backing from four of the six FEC commissions who are needed to take action. The commission is divided, with three Democrats and three Republicans. “I think the merits of the complaint warrant a serious review but it is unlikely that four members of this FEC will agree,” Malbin said.

Each potential candidate is raising money for his own political action committee or political not-for-profit group and has traveled to early nominating states such as Iowa and New Hampshire to meet with influential party leaders.

The law allows non-candidates to conduct political activity without the stricter requirements they face once they declare their bids. That may encourage such hopefuls to couch their ambitions in careful words, lest they are seen crossing the line into a candidacy before they are ready. Bush, for example, regularly offers the caveat: “If I go beyond the consideration of the possibility of running,” as he did at the Conservative Political Action Conference near Washington last month.

Bush’s advisers say such caution allows him to travel the country and headline fundraisers for the PAC he leads, called Right to Rise.

“We are fully complying with the law in all activities Governor Bush is engaging in on the political front,” Bush spokeswoman Allie Brandenburger said.

The Campaign Legal Center said complaints are likely to be filed against more than the four. But officials added that Democrats Hillary Rodham Clinton and Jim Webb, as well as Republicans Ben Carson and Graham, appear to be complying with the rules.

___

Associated Press writer Philip Elliott in Washington contributed to this report.

 

ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) – President Goodluck Jonathan has conceded defeat at elections, saying “nobody’s ambition is worth the blood of any Nigerian.”

Jonathan said in a statement that he has sent his best wishes to his successor, former military dictator Muhammadu Buhari.

His concession opens the way for an unprecedented peaceful transfer of power in Africa’s richest and most populous nation.

In his statement Tuesday night Jonathan said: “I promised the country free and fair elections. I have kept my word.” And he said he wants to secure his legacy of expanding the space for Nigerians to participate in the democratic process.

Jonathan conceded before an expected announcement of Buhari’s victory by the country’s electoral commission.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The State Department says it can find only four emails sent between former Secretary Hillary Rodham Clinton and her staff concerning drone strikes and certain U.S. surveillance programs, and those notes have little to do with either subject.

She asks for a phone call in one, a phone number in another. She seeks advice on how best to condemn information leaks, and accidentally replies to one work email with questions apparently about decorations.

The messages also reveal Clinton used an iPad to email while secretary of state in addition to her BlackBerry, despite her explanation she set up a private email account and homebrew server while she was the nation’s top diplomat so that she could carry a single device.

The four emails were obtained by The Associated Press under a 2013 Freedom of Information Act request and offer one of the first looks into Clinton’s correspondence at the State Department. It is the first time it has provided Clinton-related documents in response to several outstanding FOIA requests, the first of which AP filed in 2010.

The response also came about three weeks after AP filed a federal lawsuit against the State Department, seeking to force the release of materials during Clinton’s tenure.

Clinton is widely expected to announce her candidacy for president next month, and will enter the race as the favorite to win the Democratic nomination.

The 2013 request sought correspondence between Clinton and her advisers over a four-year period that contained keywords such as “drone,” ”metadata” and “prism.” The latter was among several code words for controversial U.S. surveillance programs revealed by former National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden.

Although Clinton left office four months before the Snowden leaks were first published in June 2013, the AP’s request sought messages about those programs before they were publicly disclosed. The request also asked for certain emails about government programs to eavesdrop on terror suspects believed to be foreigners.

Steven Aftergood, a government secrecy expert at the Federation of American Scientists, said the low number of emails provided to AP could be because the State Department uses different words to describe its operations — such as “UAV,” or unmanned aerial vehicle, instead of “drone.”

It’s also possible that Clinton and her advisers’ emails are not in the department’s archives, he said.

“If there are four, one would expect there to be quite a few more than that,” Aftergood said. “And it looks like another indication of faulty records management and retrieval at the State Department.”

Clinton has said she exchanged about 60,000 emails while secretary of state, about half of which were work-related. She said none contained classified information, and that her private email system did not suffer any security breaches.

The highly unusual practice of a Cabinet-level official physically running her own email server gave Clinton complete control over access to her message archives. She deleted emails — some 30,000 in total — she described as personal in nature, and has declined the request of Republicans that she turn over her server for an independent review.

Among the four emails obtained by AP is one in which Clinton accidentally mingled personal and work matters. In reply to a message sent in September 2011 by adviser Huma Abedin to Clinton’s personal email account, which contained an AP story about a drone strike in Pakistan, Clinton mistakenly replied with questions that appear to be about decorations.

“I like the idea of these,” she wrote to Abedin. “How high are they? What would the bench be made of? And I’d prefer two shelves or attractive boxes/baskets/ conmtainers (sic) on one. What do you think?”

Abedin replied, “Did u mean to send to me?” To which Clinton wrote, “No-sorry! Also, pls let me know if you got a reply from my ipad. I’m not sure replies go thru.”

Earlier this month, Clinton said she chose a personal account over a government one out of convenience, describing it as a way to carry a single device, rather than a State Department-issued BlackBerry for work emails and a second device for personal messages.

“Looking back, it would have been probably, you know, smarter to have used two devices,” Clinton said. Her spokesman, Nick Merrill, said Tuesday that the secretary used her iPad from time to time, primarily to read news clippings.

Also Tuesday, Republican South Carolina Rep. Trey Gowdy, the chairman of a House committee investigating the 2012 attacks in Benghazi, Libya, said he wants to interview Clinton by May 1.

Gowdy said the recorded interview would help the committee better understand decisions she made related to the creation, maintenance, retention, and ultimately deletion of public records — namely her emails.

Clinton spokesman Nick Merrill said Tuesday that Clinton told Gowdy’s committee months ago that she was ready to appear at a public hearing.