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Wednesday 10/24/18

24 October 2018 News


Domestic Abuse Calls More Dangerous Nowadays

Green Lake County Sheriff Mark Podoll says domestic abuse calls are some of the most dangerous calls they have to respond to. Last week the Sheriff’s Department dedicated a memorial wall in memory of Deputy Bruce Williams who was killed during a domestic abuse call 15 years ago. Podoll says those types of calls are unpredictable and can get violent and dangerous in a flash. “You know you just don’t know you’re going into a situation that is very volatile and people are upset. Nowadays you just don’t know.” Podoll says those calls are much more dangerous than when he began in law enforcement 37 years ago. He says on the other hand there are a lot of people who support their officers.

Mindfulness Being Incorporated Into Ripon Schools Curriculum

Earlier this month parents of children in the Ripon Area School District were invited to find out more about Mindfulness. It is something that is being expanded into the social emotional learning curriculum at Barlow Park Elementary and the Journey Charter School this academic year. Even students as young as four-years-old can suffer from stress and anxiety. Mindfulness is a way of teaching kids to pay attention, which will also help them with self control. Ripon School Superintendent Mary Whitrock says it helps with choosing the right response. “What Mindfulness is is being aware of what is around you, what is really happening how you are feeling in response to that. It is how you know that you are sick.” She says they are especially hoping the Mindfulness program will help with their Kindergarten through 2nd grade students.

Ripon Common Council Continues Tweaking Of Proposed Budget

The Ripon Common Council continued to tweak the proposed 2019 city budget this week. The Council was able to put $7,400 in to a couple of different purposes by trimming a full-time clerical position for the public works department from 40 to 32 hours. That money will be used for an emergency mapping system for the police department and to beef up the public works’ chip sealing programs for street maintenance. The budget won’t be finalized until after a public hearing on November 13th.

FDL County Adding Social Services Worker

Money is being included in the Fond du Lac County 2019 Budget for an additional social worker. County Executive Al Buechel says a lot of times they are dealing with children and some of them are Medicaid eligible, which picks up some of their costs. “That makes this position eligible when they provide services to children which will help offset a good share of the cost. So we decided we would add one social worker.” The Social Services Department went through a reorganization after last year’s budget, which changed the way caseloads were distributed. As a result the Department’s Director Patricia Lancour learned she could do with just one additional social services worker. Buechel says unfortunately a lot of the children come from parents who are dealing with opioid abuse issues, which contributes to the social workers caseloads.

Randolph Man Sentenced For Dump Truck Chase

The 35-year-old Randolph man who used a dump truck to lead Dodge County Sheriff’s deputies on a chase has been sentenced to three years in prison and three years of extended supervision. Deputies were responding to a domestic incident last March between Theodore Tamminga and a family member. Tamminga fled the scene in a dump truck and refused to stop for a deputy. During the pursuit the dump truck dropped a substantial amount of gravel and dirt in front of the squad car. This week Tamminga pleaded no contest to drunken driving and fleeing an officer charges. In addition to the sentence Tamminga was ordered to pay $1,800 in fines plus court costs.

Prostitution Suspects Make Dodge County Court Appearance

The two-people Dodge County Sheriff Dale Schmidt arrested for prostitution at a Clyman strip club made their initial court appearances this week. Twenty-six-year-old Shirley Quinn of Milwaukee and 64-year-old Joseph Brown of Columbus both face misdemeanor prostitution charges. Both have one-day jury trials scheduled for December 11th. Sheriff Schmidt was in full uniform doing a routine bar check at the Hardware Store in Clyman September 20th when he caught Quinn and Brown in the act.

5 to 7 pm Oshkosh


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