Local Rhinelander Headlines

Walker's jobs agency says 26 awards made without review

MADISON - Gov. Scott Walker's jobs agency says 26 awards worth more than $124 million were made to companies without a formal staff review by the underwriting department in the first 15 months of the agency's existence.

Walker's Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation announced the findings late Friday in advance of a July 20 meeting where one questionable loan was to be discussed.

The quasi-private jobs agency reviewed 371 awards it made between July 1, 2011, and June 30, 2013. Creating the agency was one of Walker's top priorities when he was first elected and it's been besieged with problems ever since.

Full story: WJFW

D.C. Everest wins state in overtime

MILWAUKEE - DC Everest finally finds a way to put the ball in the back of the net against Kettle Moraine. It took them all the way to the 104th minute, but the girls were composed throughout the game.

"We just wanted to keep playing our game, we had the momentum going into overtime and I thought we were playing well so it's being patient, it's a long game, it's not a golden goal type situation so we had 20 minutes," D.C. Everest Head Coach Lucas Kollross said. "I felt like we were the better team in overtime and we're just happy to get one in there."

"I couldn't of thought of a better way to end my season, I knew the goal was there, we've scored so many before, it had to come," said D.C. Everest Senior Elise Thuot.

Full story: WJFW

Northwoods groups receive state grant to help those with Opioid addictions

NORTHWOODS - Multiple Northwoods groups will work together to help people with drug addictions. Organizations in Price, Oneida, Vilas, Forest and Iron counties formed a larger group to help those with addictions.

It's called the North Central Region Opioid Consortium. It got a more than three million dollar grant from the state to use for a drug addiction program. The program will create individual plans for people.

"If we can help them not be committing criminal behavior, if we can help them stay in their home with their children, hold down a job, that's harm reduction," says Bob Kovar, Marshfield Clinic Center for Comm. Outreach. And we want to be able to find ways to help people live that way."

Full story: WJFW

Appleton resident isolated with tuberculosis

APPLETON - An Appleton resident has been diagnosed with tuberculosis and is being treated in isolation.

The city's health department made the announcement Friday.

Health Director Kurt Eggebrecht says officials are looking into who the infected person had contact with over the past several months. The investigation will determine who's at risk of exposure and those people will be screened.

Full story: WJFW

Milwaukee area police officer wounded by burglary suspect

MILWAUKEE - A suburban Milwaukee detective has been shot but his injuries are not believed to be life-threatening.

Milwaukee Police Chief Ed Flynn says three Wauwatosa police officers were investigating a local burglary when they confronted a suspect in a car in a Milwaukee apartment parking lot Friday morning.

The suspect opened fire on the officers and the officers fired back but a 52-year-old plain-clothes detective, who has 25 years of service, was hit once. The suspect ran away.

Full story: WJFW

Larger doses of radiation help patients travel less for cancer treatment

MINOCQUA - Some people in the Northwoods need to drive far to visit their doctor.

That can be difficult, but it can be even worse if you need to drive for treatment five days a week.

That's why the Marshfield Clinic in Minocqua is offering a different option for those who need radiation therapy for cancer.

Full story: WJFW

Local event celebrates Northwoods history

RHINELANDER - People can watch Northwoods history come to life this weekend. The 2nd annual Rhinelander Boom Lake Log Jam will happened at Hodag Park this weekend.

Event organizers say the event has gotten very popular. Last year, hundreds of people attended and more are expected this year. That's why organizers added more attractions to the event.

"You're going to be able to find things like the Bloody Mary contest, an arts and crafts fair that starts 9 a.m. Saturday and goes until 3 p.m., and also a canoe and kayak race that will actually take place on Sunday."

Full story: WJFW

Public hearing next month on Bucks arena financing plan

MILWAUKEE - A public hearing will be held next month on a plan for the city of Milwaukee to spend $47 million as part of the $250 million public financing package for a new Milwaukee Bucks arena.

Mayor Tom Barrett tells the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (http://bit.ly/1N6xGmV) that the city plan won't be implemented without the Legislature's approval of the state's larger share of that public financing package for the $500 million arena. Bipartisan opposition has stalled that state proposal.

But he said it's important for the city proposal to undergo public review. The first hearing is July 2.

Full story: WJFW

Detroit mom says she wants to plead guilty to killing 2 kids

DETROIT - A Detroit woman accused of killing two of her children and storing the bodies in a freezer says she committed the crimes and wants to plead guilty to murder.

Mitchelle Blair made her remarks Friday after a judge found she's mentally competent to stand trial. She says she doesn't need any more time to think about her defense.

Blair says she would accept the death penalty if Michigan had one.

Full story: WJFW

Rest, refocus, and work for Packers players during five-week break

GREEN BAY - The Green Bay Packers won't meet again until late July for training camp. Players will get the next five weeks off, but that doesn't mean they won't be working.

The Packers finished up their final mini-camp practice Thursday. Packers Running Back Eddie Lacy said those practices help the players dive into the playbooks and get comfortable. Some of the players will take some time off, but they know they can't take too much.

"Get the strength to get ready for this long season, during the end of the season, you don't want to die out and not have your strength," Packers Cornerback Micah Hyde said. "So, get that going and just relax."

Full story: WJFW

Family members of Charleston Shooting victims speak out in court

CHARLESTON, SOUTH CAROLINA - A judge has set a $1 million bond for 21-year-old Dylann Roof.

Roof is accused of fatally shooting nine people at a black church in Charleston, South Carolina.

Roof made his first court appearance Friday. He wore a jail jumpsuit and was handcuffed, and spoke only to answer questions. When asked his age, he told the judge he was 21. He also told the judge he was unemployed.

Full story: WJFW

Wisconsin school district bans American Indian team logos

MADISON - A Wisconsin public school district is banning clothing that displays sports teams with American Indian mascots.

The school board in Wisconsin's capital city of Madison unanimously approved a policy last month that one national group says may be a national first.

The ban prohibits students from wearing clothing that shows the name, logo or mascot of any team that portrays a negative stereotype of American Indians.

Full story: WJFW

Minister gets 30 years for sexual assaults in Green Bay area

GREEN BAY - A Wisconsin minister convicted of sexually assaulting teenage girls in the Green Bay area has been sentenced to 30 years in prison.

WLUK-TV reports (http://bit.ly/1QGbMfV ) Brown County Circuit Court Judge Donald Zuidmulder also sentenced Jerry Fletcher Jr. to 30 years of extended supervision on Thursday.

He was a minister at Crossover Ministries in Black Creek.

Full story: WJFW

Group training wildland firefighters to help locally & anywhere else across U.S.

BLACKWELL - A program in Forest County plays a role making sure crews fighting wildfires across the country get the trained workers they need.

Wildfires typically tear through the country this time of year. Even in the 21st century, fire crews need numbers on the ground to fight wildfires. For example, around 500 people have been fighting a fire in southern California that has consumed around 7,500 acres since Wednesday.

It's a relatively new training regimen at Blackwell Job Corps Center near Laona. But it also gives at risk urban youth the chance to find themselves in the Northwoods.

Full story: WJFW

Psychiatrist: Girl accused in Slender Man stabbing needs intervention

WAUKESHA - A psychiatrist has testified that a Wisconsin girl accused of trying to kill a classmate to please a fictitious horror character has schizophrenia that is getting worse and that intervention is the best way to mitigate the symptoms.

The 13-year-old girl's attorney wants her case moved to the juvenile system where, he argues, she can get more appropriate care.

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports that Kenneth Robbins has evaluated the girl twice. The psychiatrist testified Thursday that her delusions seem to be worsening. She has told professionals she doesn't want medication because it might make her "friends" — fictional characters from Harry Potter and Slender Man — disappear.

Full story: WJFW

Jails struggle to get qualified applicants for positions

VILAS COUNTY - Three years ago, the Vilas County Sheriff's Office got about 100 applications for corrections officer positions. This year, only fourteen applied. The jail currently staffs at its minimum levels: four officers per shift. The jail houses about 80 inmates at a given time. If there's a disturbance, two officers must stay at their stations. That leaves only two to respond. Sometimes the jail needs to call deputies in off the street.

"It takes the right type of individual to work here. You've got to be ambitious. You've got to be hardworking. It takes a person with good communication skills, and those are the types of people that we're working for," said Vilas County Jail Administrator Bill Weiss.

But Weiss, Sheriff Joe Fath, and Civil Service Commissioner Wally Obermann are struggling to find the right people to fill open positions. In fact, they're struggling to find anyone interested in the positions.

Full story: WJFW

Building teams, support to better help some Northwoods kids

ONEIDA COUNTY - Social Services leaders in Oneida County think a new program can better help kids who have mental or behavior problems.

The program is called Coordinated Service Teams. It's designed to help families create teams of people that can help them solve a certain problem. That team also consists of services that can help the child.

"It is going to be looking at the services that you have in place, or you've tried, and look at how can we coordinate that," says social work supervisor Mary Gadzalinski.

Full story: WJFW

No wrongdoing determined in Tomah VA death

TOMAH - A Department of Veterans Affairs investigation has found practitioners acted appropriately when treating a 74-year-old veteran who died at the VA Medical Center in Tomah.

The Daily Herald Media reports (http://wdhne.ws/1FoVYC9 ) the inspector general found that a doctor failed to diagnose Thomas Patrick Baer's stroke as he waited in the urgent care clinic, "however, the physician properly considered broad diagnostic possibilities."

His family waited with him for more than two hours to be seen Jan. 12. He suffered two strokes and wasn't given anti-clotting medication or a CT scan because the scanner was down.

Full story: WJFW

Northwoods young forests provide habitat for songbirds facing population challenges

LAKE TOMAHAWK - Amber Roth stands in an opening of a young forest plot in the Northern Highland American Legion State Forest near Lake Tomahawk.

"I'm hoping you're hearing all of the different birds around us," she says to the field trip participants around her as birds chirp and sing. "This is fabulous nest cover for birds."

Roth is a research assistant professor at Michigan Tech University. In this young forest, Roth and her team don't see a wasteland, but a valuable habitat for some bird species.

Full story: WJFW

Suspect in shooting is in custody; 9 people killed

CHARLESTON, S.C. - Surveillance photos have helped bring a quick end to the manhunt for the suspect in last night's deadly shooting at a church in Charleston, South Carolina.

A motorist today spotted the car driven by Dylann Roof in North Carolina, and alerted authorities. Police arrested the 21-year-old without resistance.

Authorities say he killed nine people Wednesday night at a prayer meeting inside the historic black church. The Justice Department has begun a hate crime investigation.

Full story: WJFW

Wisconsin unemployment rate increases to 4.6 percent

MADISON - Wisconsin's unemployment rate increased to 4.6 percent in May, up from 4.4 percent in April.

The state Department of Workforce Development reported the latest figures Thursday. The state came in below the national unemployment rate of 5.5 percent for the month and the previous year's rate in May, also 5.5 percent.

The department also reports that the state lost 6,100 private sector jobs during the month of May.

Full story: WJFW

Wildlife agency seeks 'citizen scientists' to watch mayflies

LA CROSSE - U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service officials are recruiting "citizen scientists" to gather field data to help better predict when millions of the mayflies will swarm the banks of the Mississippi River.

A website and smartphone apps have been developed to allow volunteers to gather and submit field observations.

A fisheries biologist with the agency tells the La Crosse Tribune (http://bit.ly/1H0YtSv ) that the technology will allow those with little training to record standardized observations that will be uploaded to public databases available to scientists.

Full story: WJFW

Ashland, D.C. Everest, and Rhinelander hope for successful weekends

WISCONSIN - A big weekend lies ahead for some area schools.

Ashland, D.C. Everest, and Rhinelander could become the first women's soccer team north of Wisconsin Rapids to win a state championship.

"I think it's great. I think it's a testament as to, you know where soccer is coming as for as the state of Wisconsin is concerned," Rhinelander soccer coach Dan Millot said. "The fact that we can have three teams represent in three different divisions, I think speaks volumes."

Full story: WJFW

Brothers' strong bond

NORTHWOODS - In the early 2000s Ryan Meyer, an eye doctor in the Upper Peninsula, was diagnosed with primary sclerosing cholangitis. The disease gradually causes severe liver damage.

By 2011 Ryan needed a liver transplant. And he needed it in a hurry. His brother Ron, also an eye doctor in the Upper Peninsula, decided to give Ryan half of his liver.

"I was losing a bunch of weight, nothing was functioning, I was retaining water, all kinds of stuff, and it was one of those things where I needed it quickly or I wasn't going to be here anymore," Ryan said.

Full story: WJFW

Family history of schizophrenia revealed in Slender Man case

WAUKESHA - An expert witness has testified about a history of mental illness in the family of one of two Wisconsin girls charged with trying to kill a classmate to please a fictitious horror character.

Forensic psychologist Deborah Collins testified for the defense Wednesday at a hearing for the 13-year-old girl. The girl's attorney wants the case moved to the juvenile system, arguing she can get better care there.

Collins testified the early onset schizophrenia diagnosed in the girl may have a genetic basis. Collins said the girl's father suffered from a similar mental illness as an adolescent.

Full story: WJFW

Highway department uses toilet paper to help repair roads

ONEIDA COUNTY - During the summer, roadways in parts of Oneida County look a little odd. Many people are wonder why it looks like there's toilet paper on the roads. That's because it is in fact toilet paper people are finding on the roadways, one-ply to be exact.

The highway department is working on their crack-sealing operation. It's a process where they go and fill existing cracks in the roadways with a hot tar. Part of this process includes drilling into the pavement before the tar is laid.

"First thing we do is go through all the major cracks and router them out," said Oneida County Highway Commissioner Freeman Bennett. "Then we dry them and apply a tar at approximately 350 - 380 degrees. Between state and county roads this year, Oneida County will be crack sealing approximately 60 miles of road."

Full story: WJFW

Field trip showcases timber harvest potential of state forest

ARBOR VITAE - The Northern Highland American Legion State Forest in northern Wisconsin makes about $4 million every year from timber harvest on its lands.

A relatively small amount of land is left completely untouched. But more than 70 percent of forest land is eligible for harvest. Many of the 230,000 acres of state forest are easy to access for loggers.

"The Northern Highland, being sandy and gravelly, can accommodate logging year-round, almost. It's really good ground to work in," said Northern Highland American Legion State Forest forestry team supervisor Jeff Olsen on a field trip this month.

Full story: WJFW

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