News 06.20.16
20 June 2016 News
The Winnebago County Sheriff’s Office makes an arrest in connection with a string of armed robberies at conveniences stores in the area. Captain Dave Mack says over the past three weeks, law enforcement have responded to seven armed robberies. Friday afternoon, Mack says a search warrant was executed at a residence in Winnebago County and a male was arrested. Police believe he is involved with the recent robberies and is currently being held in the Winnebago County Jail. Mack says the investigation is on going and more information will eventually be released.
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Testimony from the Fond du lac County Medical Examiner in a cold case murder trial was withdrawn Friday after the defense objected to his testimony as hearsay. The prosecution was going to call Doctor Doug Kelly to the stand for his opinion on the probable cause of Berit Beck’s death, because the doctors who performed the autopsy in 1990 are no longer alive. The prosecution wanted Kelly’s opinion based on his review of the autopsy report. When Dennis Brantner’s attorney objected, Kelly was withdrawn as a witness. The autopsy determined that the 18 year old Beck died from an “undetermined cause through homicidal means,” probably from strangulation. Former coroner Sue Casper testified that she confirmed Beck’s cause of death as strangulation. Beck disappeared from the Forest Mall in July 1990. Her body was found a month later in a roadside ditch in Waupun. Brantner was arrested last year after DNA matched his fingerprints to prints found in Beck’s van. Testimony is scheduled to resume today. The trial is expected to wrap up by July first.
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A proposed sand mine in a rural area of southeast Fond du lac County is pitting supporters in the town of Ashford against their neighbors across the road in the town of Auburn. The Ashford Appeals Board last week approved a special use permit for the mine despite protests from dozens of residents upset the operation will disrupt their peace and quiet. Fond du lac County Planner Sam Tobias says there is no doubt that neighbors will be impacted by dust, and possibly by truck traffic. Tobias says this mine is unusual compared to other mining operations in the county because there are so many impacted residential neighbors. He says the operation is going to be behind people’s backyard fences and its a real balancing act. Tobias says the other problem is it’s on a town line between the town of Ashford where the permit is being issued and town of Auburn.
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A former Wisconsin VA doctor accused of over-prescribing opiates has set up a private psychiatry practice as disciplinary proceedings against him drag on. Dr. David Houlihan was fired from the Tomah VA Medical Center in November following a federal investigation. Wisconsin’s Medical Examining Board is now investigating his practices and the overdose death of a patient. Physicians are typically allowed to keep their licenses during investigations, but veterans’ advocates have raised concerns about Houlihan. Some patients referred to him as the “candy man” for allegedly handing out excess narcotics. The board suspended his license in March, saying he was dangerous. An administrative law judge later reinstated it. The clinic’s website lists Houlihan as its only doctor.
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High schools for teens recovering from addiction are on the rise as the U.S. works to cope with the spike in opioid abuse. There are about 36 recovery high schools nationwide and seven more are planning to open in five states — Florida, Illinois, Colorado, Minnesota and Washington. Though recovery schools are seeing increased demand, their numbers have remained largely static over the past decade, with an average of two opening and two closing each year. And more than half of the 77 U.S. recovery schools that have opened since 1979 have closed, some after only two or three years. Advocacy groups, legislators and researchers are now working to make the new schools more sustainable by addressing longstanding issues they face with fluctuating enrollment, academic rigor and uncertain funding.
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The Milwaukee Bucks mark a milestone in the history of the NBA franchise as ground is broken for a new arena in downtown Milwaukee. A ceremony and celebration was held Saturday at the new arena site just north of the Bucks’ current home, the BMO Harris Bradley Center. With the turn of a shovel, construction can begin on the $524 million arena that’s expected to be ready for the 2018-19 season. The Milwaukee Bucks have signed a 30-year lease with Wisconsin Center District, the public entity that will own the new arena. The Bucks will pay at least $1 million annually to rent the arena from the district with lease payments totaling $45 million over the term of the lease.
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