Local Rhinelander Headlines

Cars vandalized, gunshots heard in Ferguson after no indictment decision

FERGUSON - Police cars have been vandalized and several gunshots have been heard on the streets of Ferguson after the announcement that a white police officer will not be indicted in the shooting death of an unarmed black 18-year-old.

About 15 minutes after St. Louis County Prosecutor Bob McCulloch announced Officer Darren Wilson wouldn't be indicted, county police used a bullhorn to tell crowds outside the Ferguson Police Department to disperse, saying it had become an unlawful assembly.

Full story: WJFW

Newswatch 12 reports - Wisconsin's teen birth rate declines: access to birth control, 16 and Pregnant, and economy could be reasons for change

WISCONSIN - More than 4,000 girls who were younger than 20 gave birth in Wisconsin in 2012.

That might sound like a lot, but that's declined 50% since 1991.

Wisconsin isn't the only state to see significant changes to teen birth rates.

Full story: WJFW

New details, possible appeal within case of Northwoods sex offender who allegedly made photo booklet of young girls

OSHKOSH - A registered sex offender from Rhinelander will likely try again to get new charges against him dropped.

Thirty-two-year-old Albert Chagnon faces 23 felony counts for storing photos of young girls without their parents' permission.

Prosecutors say he made a booklet filled with photos of young girls cut out from newspapers and magazines.

Full story: WJFW

Park Falls airport gets $485k approved for improvements

PARK FALLS - The Park Falls Municipal Airport will get $485,000 of improvements. The money will pay to get the airfield pavement reworked.

Ryan Donnelly, airport development engineer with the Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT), says the project will improve safety and efficiency at the airport.

Governor Scott Walker made the announcement Friday.

Full story: WJFW

Northern Wisconsin lawmakers push for geographic diversity on budget committee; Tiffany seeks seat on powerful panel

MINOCQUA - A lawmaker representing most of the Northwoods thinks the legislature's most powerful committee needs a better geographic balance.

Sen. Tom Tiffany (R-Hazelhurst) wants to speak for northern Wisconsin on the Joint Finance Committee.

The committee is in charge of a major step in forming the state's two-year budget.

Full story: WJFW

Roll-over sends 2 to the hospital

TOMAHAWK - A single car crash sent two people to the hospital Monday. It happened on highway 8 near county road A around 11:30 in the morning.

The car was heading west on highway 8 when it lost control in the slush. The vehicle rolled over once before coming to a stop.

A man and woman were in the car. Both had non-life threatening injuries and were taken to Sacred Heart Hospital.

Full story: WJFW

LUHS collects items for VA Medical Center

MINOCQUA - Local high schoolers want you to help them say thank you to Wisconsin Veterans.

Lakeland Union's National Honor Society is collecting items for the VA Medical Center in Tomah. They need personal comfort items and snacks. You can donate anything from toothbrushes to DVD's to reading glasses.

The National Honor Society has been planning the event for a while.

Full story: WJFW

College student to stand trial on ricin possession

GREEN BAY - A University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh student accused of possessing the deadly toxin ricin has been ordered to stand trial.

A federal judge in Green Bay ruled Monday there's enough evidence against 21-year-old Kyle Smith to move forward with his case.

WLUK-TV (http://bit.ly/1zSeylV ) reports prosecutors argued Smith admitted he knew what he was making and shouldn't have been doing it. No lab equipment was found in his off-campus home.

Full story: WJFW

Good year for dairy farmers in Wisconsin

MADISON - Wisconsin dairy experts say some farmers are enjoying a sweet combination of record-high milk prices and record-low feed costs that are creating profits in 2014 that are six times higher than previous good years.

Randy Greenfield, a dairy specialist for a Madison-based livestock feed company, says this year will prove to be the best financially for many dairy farmers.

He says some dairy farms that milk the state average of 117 cows will see profits totaling more than $200,000.

Full story: WJFW

Opening weekend deer hunt number down

RHINELANDER - Hunters from all over got out on opening weekend to enjoy the start of gun hunting season.

But this year's opening weekend hasn't been as successful as last year's.

About 103 total deer were registered on opening day at Rhinelander's main registration location.

DNR workers say that number is actually down 25% from last season, and that downward trend is continuing into Sunday.

Full story: WJFW

DNR announces new wetland restoration plan

MADISON - The state Department of Natural Resources and federal environmental officials have developed a new plan to promote wetland restoration.

Currently the DNR requires parties that get permits to fill in wetlands to offset the impact by either restoring wetlands elsewhere or by purchasing credits from banks established by other entities that have done restoration work.

DNR officials say they've finalized an agreement with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency that allows permit holders to purchase credits directly from the DNR, which will use the money to fund wetland restoration projects.

Full story: WJFW

Deer hunt impacts businesses in the Northwoods

RHINELANDER - The gun deer hunt just started Saturday. Hunters can bring business to the area. Businesses are already seeing an impact.

Some people might travel to the Northwoods just for the deer hunting. That means they'll need a place to stay, but not all of the resorts in the Northwoods saw people dressed in orange or camouflage.

"It does not bring a lot of tourism for out of town guest to Holiday Acres, but it's certainly a big deal as far as the area's concerned," said Holiday Acres co-owner Kari Zambon. "I think there are other places that get traffic that we aren't seeing."

Full story: WJFW

Wives and girlfriends enjoy Holiday Open House

RHINELANDER - The start of the deer hunting season normally leaves wives and girlfriends at home by themselves, but an organization in Rhinelander wants to get them out of the house.

This was the first time Downtown Rhinelander Inc. hosted Holiday Open House Saturday. Businesses along Brown street welcomed wives, girlfriends and families into the their stores.

The owner of Hext Theater in Rhinelander believes this is kind of like a kick-off for the holiday season.

Full story: WJFW

Steps to prepare for freezing rain

NORTHWOODS - We could see freezing rain in the Northwoods Sunday. If we do, leaders in Oneida County want people to be prepared.

The Oneida County Emergency Management director says it's hard to tell when the roads are slippery. So they want you to take your time on the roads and on the sidewalks.

"Freezing rain, a lot of times you can't tell that it's actually frozen. The ground is frozen," said Oneida County Emergency Management director Ken Kortenhof. "So even when you're walking on your sidewalks, stuff like that, be careful not to slip. Make sure if you have salt you can salt your sidewalks so you don't have problems there as well."

Full story: WJFW

2 injured, 1 dead in Taylor County crash

TAYLOR COUNTY - Slippery road conditions could have caused the death to one person and injured two others in a car crash in Taylor County Friday.

The Taylor County Sheriff's Office says the crash happened around 4 p.m. on County Line Road and 11th Avenue in the Town of Roosevelt. Deputies say the driver of a 1997 Ford Explorer lost control while trying to turn North onto 11th Ave. The truck sled into the ditch on the Northeast corner of the intersection. It then struck a utility pole as it was overturning.

The 58-year-old driver, Laverne Palms, was airlifted from the scene with serious injuries.

Full story: WJFW

Tiffany, Wisconsin GOP skeptical of billions of dollars of budget requests from state agencies

MINOCQUA - A quick glance at Wisconsin's governmental finances could convince you the state has a hole to fill.

Projections show the state will take in $2.2 billion fewer than its agencies want to spend from mid-2015 to mid-2017.

The state legislature and Gov. Scott Walker will need to figure out how to make the numbers work.

Full story: WJFW

Door County fish business subject of federal probe

MILWAUKEE - A Wisconsin company that processes Great Lakes fish for sale worldwide has been caught up in a federal investigation into the illegal trafficking of lake trout, lake sturgeon, whitefish and walleye.

Court records show U.S. Fish and Wildlife agents set up a fake fish store in L'Anse, Michigan, recorded conversations, and raided Dan's Fish in the northeastern Wisconsin city of Sturgeon Bay in Door County.

No criminal charges have been filed, but search warrants served as part of the investigation were recently unsealed.

Full story: WJFW

Wisconsin gun hunt begins

MADISON - A Wisconsin tradition is continuing as the state's nine-day gun deer hunt gets underway.

The season opens as the sun rises Saturday and will run through Nov. 30. Forecasts for opening weekend called for freezing rain and fog with highs ranging from the upper 30s to the low 40s both days.

As of Wednesday the state Department of Natural Resources had sold 615,644 licenses, about 15,400 fewer than at the same point last year. The agency sold 635,165 licenses in all last year.

Full story: WJFW

2 men on sinking boat are rescued on Lake Michigan

One Wisconsin man is recovering in a hospital after he and another man were rescued from a sinking boat on Lake Michigan Friday morning.

The Ozaukee County Sheriff's Office responded to a call from a man who said his boat was taking on water at about 11 a.m. The boat was less than a mile off the coast of Belgium, Wisconsin, according to the sheriff's office.

The men and their boat were recovered and brought back to shore.

Full story: WJFW

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