      |
RHINELANDER - ArtStart in Rhinelander wants you to help discuss a book based on a Pulitzer Prize winning article.
They have a new community program called Community Read. They will hold their first community read on Saturday from 2 to 4 in the afternoon.
ArtStart hopes to encourage a community discussion about timely issues.
GREEN BAY - The Green Bay Packers have a limited number of standing-room-only tickets for the Chicago Bears game at Lambeau Field Sunday night and the Philadelphia Eagles game Nov. 16.
Packers tickets director Mark Wagner says the team will test the concept and decide later if it will work for high demand games.
MADISON - A consultant who provided Democratic gubernatorial candidate Mary Burke with material for her jobs plan that he also gave to other candidates is speaking out about accusations of plagiarism.
Eric Schnurer wrote a first-person piece for The Atlantic that was released online Thursday. It's the first time Schnurer has spoken publicly about the issue and it comes two days after Burke lost to Republican Gov. Scott Walker by nearly 6 points.
VILAS COUNTY - Wisconsin broke a long standing record when it comes to voting, on Tuesday.
The state saw its highest voter turnout for a non-presidential election year in at least 60 years.
That's despite a smaller turnout number than Governor Walker's 2012 recall election.
MADISON - Governor Scott Walker came back to the State Capitol in Madison Wednesday after his win in Tuesday's Election.
The State House chambers filled with applause and congratulations as Walker met with members of his party.
Walker will be working with a legislature that has an increased the Republican majority after Tuesday's election.
GREEN BAY - Green Bay police are searching a site in Portage County in connection with the 1998 disappearance of college student Amber Wilde.
Press-Gazette Media (http://gbpg.net/1x9bthq ) reports officers are searching about 30 acres west of Waupaca that also were searched in 2000.
PORTAGE CO. - Sheriff's deputies were looking for Charles Hartleben on Tuesday.
They originally wanted him for violating his parole.
Portage County Sheriff's deputies got him Tuesday night.
CONOVER - It appears the Conover town board will try to include ATV access in its bike-pedestrian trail project.
The major question the town board faced was whether to move ahead with the Conover-Phelps Trail project as planned, or to change it to include ATV access on a portion of the trail.
RHINELANDER - Some students at Rhinelander High School could face criminal charges for allegedly sending nude photos.
Some students have already gotten suspensions for sharing the photos while they were in school. Now, the Oneida County Sheriff's Office is investigating the students involved to find out if they broke state laws.
The Sheriff's Office is investigating more than 35 students for allegedly sharing sexually explicit photos. It's also known as sexting and some students could face charges for it.
MERRILL - A young Merrill woman hoped people would open their wallets to help her fight stage three lung cancer.
Celina Winchell put out donation jars in at least 17 businesses in Lincoln and Marathon County late last year.
But she didn't have cancer.
LINCOLN CO. - Friends, family, and coworkers hope you know where Jeffrey Maruska is.
On Wednesday, the Lincoln County Sheriff said his office considers Maruska missing.
The Irma man works at Badger Evergreen.
RHINELANDER - More mice in the Northwoods want to invade your house this year. Pest control businesses have saw an increase in calls for mice issues compared to recent years. Experts say you should secure the outside of your house first because home-made mouse repellents often aren't enough.
"There's things like spearmint, moth balls, or dryer sheets, or things like that," said Performance Pest Solutions Owner Nick Borski. "But definitely the number one way to stop mice from coming in the house is, you have to find where they're using and get those areas sealed up. If you can fit your pinky into a spot, it's pretty easy for mice to do too."
WISCONSIN - Majorities in several Wisconsin counties told Governor Walker they want him to take federal money to expand BadgerCare.
Walker has rejected money from the Affordable Care Act.
Nineteen counties in the state asked voters whether the state should accept the federal money. Majorities in all counties said yes.
MARATHON COUNTY - One of 5 people arrested after a heroin overdose in Marathon County gets convicted of a heroin charge.
25 year old Jacob Gould was origionally charged with 4 felonies. 3 of them were related to drugs.
Gould appeared in Marathon County Court Tuesday.
RHINELANDER - Wisconsin Public Service wants to help hunters and fishermen heat their cabins and campers safely this winter and fall.
Outdoorsmen need to test for carbon monoxide when starting up a fireplace or furnace.
Hunters and fishermen should get their heating equipment inspected before they use it.
WISCONSIN - Silent sports bring a lot of tourism to the Northwoods.
That's why a Wisconsin group promoting nonmotorized trail use wants the public's input on those trails.
The Nonmotorized Recreation and Transportation Trails Council put together an online survey to find out how people use the trails.
MARATHON COUNTY - Wausau Republican Dave Heaton appears to have won a State Assembly seat by only 86 votes.
Heaton beat incumbent representative Mandy Wright. But Wednesday, Wright told us she's exploring options for a recount. She said she'll make a decision about a recount by the end of the week.
Wright wouldn't need to pay for the recount because the race is so close.
MADISON - This year's Wisconsin state Capitol Christmas tree is a 40-foot balsam fir from a Pelican Lake farm.
Gov. Scott Walker announced Wednesday that the tree to stand in the rotunda of the Capitol this December hails from the farm of Dennis and Kim Schoeneck.
Walker says the theme of tree this year will be ``Honoring Wisconsin's Veterans.''
For complete real-time poll results visit wisconsinvotes.org at the link below.
Statewide Races
Governor (100 percent of precincts reporting)
Mary Burke (D) 46.6%
Scott Walker (R) 52.3% Projected Winner
WISCONSIN - The race for governor didn't run late into the early hours of Wednesday morning. Mary Burke (D-Madison) gave her concession speech about two hours after polls closed Tuesday night. She didn't seem pleased by the results, but she tried to rally her Democratic base.
Burke said it's not about whether you get knocked down, but it's whether you get back up. She says Democrats got knocked down Tuesday night, but they'll need to fight to survive.
MADISON - Governor Scott Walker says he wants to move quickly in concert with Republicans who control the Wisconsin Legislature in enacting his next state budget.
Based on preliminary numbers, Republicans will have a 19-14 majority in the Senate, one better than last session. And they are on pace to increase their majority in the Assembly to as large as 63 to 36.
RHINELANDER - You won't find frozen lakes in the Northwoods yet, but winter is just around the corner and with a cold week in the forecast ahead, lakes could be freezing over before you know it.
It doesn't just change the landscape when lakes freeze. It changes the habitat of fish and frozen lakes can kill fish. It happens when ice stays on lakes too long and thick snow pack blocks sunlight. The oxygen levels in the water become low and fish can die. But biologists say some chill in the fall is helpful.
MERRILL - A Lincoln County woman will spend seven years in prison for killing two people in a car crash. She had been driving drunk.
The sentencing for 26-year-old Ashley Baumann sounded very similar to the jury trial. The defense argues that Baumann still doesn't remember what happened. They also said one of the other girls in the car could've been driving.
Statewide Races
Governor (2.7 percent of precincts reporting)
Mary Burke (D) 34.2%
Scott Walker (R) 64.8%
Attorney General (2.6 percent of precincts reporting)
Susan Happ (D) 33.7%
Brad Schimel (R) 63.3%
LINCOLN COUNTY - A Lincoln County woman will spend 7 years in prison for killing two people in a car crash.
A Lincoln County jury found 26-year-old Ashley Baumann guilty of 7 felonies in May. Her convictions include two homicide charges. Each of those carries a 25 year maximum sentence.
Prosecutors say Baumann was driving nearly 100 miles an hour when the car flipped. 31-year-old Misty Glisch and 33-year old Jessica Hartwig died.
RHINELANDER - Rhinelander takes pride in being known for the Hodag. Downtown Rhinelander Inc. has decorated the city with painted statues of the Hodag for the past five years.
They've become another attraction to the city.
"It does a lot in the sense of, there are literally people that come to downtown to try and find the Hodags and take pictures with them all the time," said the Director of DRI, Maggie Steffen.
MINOCQUA/WOODRUFF - Your experience driving through Minocqua and Woodruff may seem a little less chaotic and frustrating.
Workers finished construction on US 51 last Wednesday.
The project included reconfiguring the roadway and adding more turn lanes.
STEVENS POINT - Stevens Point Police want to remind parents how important it is to check their kids' Halloween candy.
A family found a 3-inch long needle inside a bite sized Snicker candy bar. They got the candy while trick or treating October 31st.
WAUSAU - A Wausau man will spend 33 years in prison for beating another man to death.
Twenty-year-old Zachary Froehlich pled no contest in August to first degree reckless homicide. He told police he swung the bat that killed Kerby Kneiss in June 2012. Kneiss was found dead in his garage with severe skull fractures.
Froehlich had been charged with six other felonies including armed robbery.
RHINELANDER - Most people might not know the inner workings of the American justice system.
A Wisconsin foundation tries to help the public better understand it. Now a former Vilas County judge will be a part of that foundation.
The Wisconsin Law Foundation just inducted Judge Timothy Vocke as a fellow.
