(Time Magazine via AP)NEW YORK (AP) – Time magazine’s 2018 person of the year are the “guardians and the war on truth.” The group is made up of four journalists and a newspaper that Time says “are representatives of a broader fight by countless others around the world. Time’s editor-in-chief Edward Felsenthal made the announcement Tuesday on NBC’s “Today” show….
(DNR) MADISON, Wis. – Wisconsin agriculture officials have confirmed 11 more cases of chronic wasting disease on a Washington County deer farm. The Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection quarantined the farm in March after a buck there tested positive. The agency announced Monday that 11 additional animals of the farm have tested positive for the disease. A team…
BARRON, Wis. (AP) — The city of Barron is holding a “tree of hope” lighting ceremony in honor of missing 13-year-old Jayme Closs. The local middle school student has been missing since her parents were slain Oct. 15. James and Denise Closs were fatally shot in their home, and investigators believe Jayme was abducted. Wednesday’s event at Riverview Middle School…
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Warmer weather is affecting some winter sports at the University of Minnesota. Higher temperatures cause more snowmelt and shorter ski seasons. Two seasons ago, the university’s Nordic ski team could not participate in the American Birkebeiner, which was canceled because of warm weather. Gopher winter sports are off to a better start this season, but the team…
SHEBOYGAN, Wis. – A Sheboygan woman is accused of running a drug house and hiding the corpse of an overdose victim in a crawlspace, along with stealing his ID and debit card. Police acting on tips found the body of 30-year-old Matthew Mercure in Mullens’ apartment on Nov. 20. Andrea Mullens has since been charged with four felonies and one…
Bald Eagle StareST. PAUL, Minn. – The University of Minnesota Raptor Center has euthanized a second eagle this hunting season because of lead poisoning. The Raptor Center says it sees lead poisoning cases annually beginning with deer hunting season and lead bullets are the main cause. The birds scavenge on an animal that’s been shot and wind up eating lead…
(AP Photo/Jim Mone)ST. PAUL, Minn. — Minnesota will have a projected $1.5 billion surplus for the next two-year budget period, state officials announced Thursday, setting the stage for a spirited debate over taxes and spending in the legislative session that starts in January. The healthy surplus gives Democratic Gov.-elect Tim Walz and the Legislature more room for spending initiatives, tax…
LA CROSSE, Wis. – Regents have approved a plan to increase pay for employees of the University of Wisconsin System by 3 percent each of the next two fiscal years. The Board of Regents unanimously approved the pay plan at a meeting in La Crosse Thursday. Regents also backed an identical pay plan for UW-Madison. The proposal calls for full…
MINNEAPOLIS – Minnesota political party leaders and state and local officials are considering mail balloting for the 2020 presidential primary, a dramatic change from past practices in which citizens make their selections in party caucuses. The state will switch to a more straightforward primary system beginning in 2020 that allows voters to cast ballots for their preferred choice for president…
MINNEAPOLIS – A sole finalist is in line to become the first female president of the University of Minnesota. The University of Minnesota’s Board of Regents on Wednesday advanced Joan Gabel, provost at the University of South Carolina, as the single finalist for the president’s job. Regents Chair David McMillan says Gabel “has shown strong leadership,” and the presidential search…
ST. PAUL, Minn. – Minnesota officials are preparing to release a budget forecast that will set the stage for the debate over taxes and spending in the 2019 legislative session. Minnesota Management and Budget is due to issue the forecast late Thursday morning. The revenue and spending projections are expected to show a significant surplus, which would give Gov.-elect Tim…
ASHWAUBENON, Wis. – Wisconsin retailer Shopko is closing 39 stores in 19 states. Shopko spokeswoman Michelle Hansen says each store employs 10 to 25 employees, putting the scope of job cuts at about 400 to nearly 1,000 positions. Liquidation sales begin Friday with the stores closing by the end of February. The Green Bay area department store chain operates about…
(Jean Pieri/Pioneer Press via AP)ST. PAUL, Minn. – Cities across Minnesota are turning to spraying brine on roads to help keep them ice-free, with some saying it’s better than salt. The Minnesota Department of Transportation has added brine sprayers to its fleet of 840 snowplows. The St. Paul Pioneer Press reports Ramsey County almost tripled its salt-spraying capacity last winter….
(AP) – USA Gymnastics is turning to bankruptcy in an effort to ensure its survival. The embattled organization filed a Chapter 11 bankruptcy petition on Wednesday as it attempts to reach settlements in the dozens of sex-abuse lawsuits it faces and to forestall its potential demise at the hands of the U.S. Olympic Committee. USA Gymnastics filed the petition in…
NEW YORK – Elm Pet Foods is the latest maker of dog food to issue a recall over elevated levels of vitamin D, which can cause kidney failure at high enough levels. Similar recalls have been issued by ANF Inc., Sunshine Mills Inc., Natural Life Pet Products, and Nutrisca over the last month. Elm and others urge consumers to either…
MADISON, Wis. – The Republican-controlled Wisconsin Legislature has approved a sweeping package of bills weakening the incoming Democratic governor and attorney general. The state Assembly approved the lame-duck legislation Wednesday morning. The Wisconsin Senate did the same less than three hours earlier after lawmakers worked through most of the night. The bills now go to outgoing Republican Gov. Scott Walker,…
ST. PAUL, Minn. – The Department of Natural Resources plans two special deer hunts this month aimed at limiting the spread of chronic wasting disease in wild deer in southeastern Minnesota. The DNR on Tuesday announced the hunts in specific deer permit areas south of Interstate 90. Residents and nonresidents can take part in the hunts from Dec. 21 to…
WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump has proclaimed Wednesday as a National Day of Mourning in remembrance of former President George H.W. Bush. Out of respect for the 41st president, the federal government will be closed, and the United States Postal Service will suspend regular mail deliveries, retail services and administrative office activity. Additionally, the New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq…
NEW YORK – More U.S. beef is being recalled because it may be contaminated with salmonella. The U.S. Department of Agriculture said Tuesday a unit of Brazil’s JBS is now recalling a total of more than 12 million pounds of raw beef that was shipped around the U.S. JBS Tolleson in Arizona already recalled about 7 million pounds of beef…
MADISON, Wis. – Sweeping proposals to weaken the incoming governor and attorney general in Wisconsin have been advanced to the full Legislature for approval. But the Republican-controlled committee around midnight Monday night did not advance a bill to change the date of the 2020 presidential primary, a move that would cost millions and drew widespread opposition from election officials. That…
MADISON, Wis. – Gov. Scott Walker has appointed a high-powered attorney to serve on the University of Wisconsin System Board of Regents. Walker has selected Scott Beightol to serve until May 2023. He replaces Republican Bryan Steil, who resigned last week to focus on his first term in Congress. Beightol is a partner in the Michael Best and Friedrich law…
MADISON, Wis. -Two dozen Wisconsin health care providers, insurance companies and others in the industry are asking legislators to drop changes affecting Medicaid that Republicans offered in a lame-duck session. The letter Monday was signed by the most powerful health care organizations in the state including the Wisconsin Medical Society, the Wisconsin Hospital Association, UW Health and the Medical College…
ST. PAUL, Minn. – Minnesota health officials are adding Alzheimer’s disease as a qualifying condition to get medical marijuana. The state Health Department announced Monday that the new condition would take effect in August 2019. Health Commissioner Jan Malcolm says there is “some evidence” that marijuana improves the mood, sleep and behavior of people with Alzheimer’s. The department takes public…
ST. PAUL, Minn. – Minnesota Attorney General Lori Swanson is suing an Indiana company over a data breach that exposed information of over 8,000 Minnesotans. Swanson filed the lawsuit Monday against Medical Informatics Engineering Inc. According to Swanson, hackers in 2015 stole protected health information of over 8,000 Minnesotans from MIE, which provides web-based electronic health records services to medical…
MINNEAPOLIS – Environmental groups have gone to court to challenge the state’s decision to grant key permits for the proposed PolyMet copper-nickel mine in northeastern Minnesota. The Minnesota Center for Environmental Advocacy and its allies say the permits would allow PolyMet to threaten water quality downstream for centuries, that they fail to address safety concerns about the mine’s proposed waste…
photo courtesy: honortheearth.orgST. PAUL, Minn. – A leading opponent of Enbridge Energy’s planned Line 3 crude oil pipeline replacement across northern Minnesota has applied for a seat on the regulatory panel that approved the project. Winona LaDuke is executive director of Honor the Earth, a tribally rooted environmental group. She announced Monday that she has applied for the Public Utilities…
BEMIDJI, Minn. – The Beltrami County prosecutors say they’ve charged five people in connection with the death of a teen who fell to his death from the seventh floor of a Bemidji State University dormitory. The county attorney’s office says five men have been charged with two gross misdemeanor counts of furnishing alcohol to a minor. Nineteen-year-old Isaac Jon Morris,…
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) – People across southern Minnesota are digging out from the first major snowstorm of the season. The National Weather Service says the storm dumped 11 inches of snow on Sherburn and near Lakefield as of Sunday morning. Winnebago reports 9 inches of snow, Mankato 8 inches and Caledonia 7. Minneapolis had nearly 3 inches. Meteorologist Chris O’Brien at…
BEMIDJI, Minn. – The Bureau of Criminal Apprehension has identified the officer and deputy who fatally shot an armed suspect following a struggle over a gun. Officer Bidal Duran with the Bemidji Police Department and Deputy Brandon Newhouse with the Beltrami County Sheriff’s Officer are both on standard administrative leave following the incident. The deceased armed suspect has also been…
photo courtesy: Twitter/NWSUPDATE: Officials have canceled a tsunami warning for coastal areas of southern Alaska following the 7.0-magnitude earthquake that shook Anchorage. National Tsunami Warning Center senior technician Michael Burgy said the tsunami warning was automatically generated, Officials monitored gauges to see if any underwater landslides would generate tsunami waves. Because there were none, the warning was canceled. Police had…
ST. PAUL, Minn. – State officials say Minnesota’s agricultural, mining and manufacturing exports grew 6 percent to $5.7 billion between July and the end of September. It marks the seventh consecutive quarter of growth. The Department of Employment and Economic Development says the state is on track to see an overall increase in exports for 2018. Exports have remained strong…
BUENOS AIRES, Argentina – President Donald Trump has joined the leaders of Mexico and Canada to sign a revised North American trade deal. Trump gathered with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and outgoing Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto on the sidelines of Friday’s meeting of the Group of 20 nations in Buenos Aires. The revamped deal, which Trump calls the…
DETROIT LAKES, Minn. – Prosecutors have charged a hunter with manslaughter for fatally shooting a former police chief in a rural part of northwestern Minnesota. The Becker County Attorney’s office on Thursday charged 54-year-old Morris Silas Dodd Jr. of rural Ogema with one count of second-degree manslaughter. According to the complaint, Dodd acknowledged hunting in the area where 53-year-old former…
BEMIDJI, Minn. – Authorities say law enforcement officers in northern Minnesota have fatally shot an armed suspect following a struggle over a gun. Police in Bemidji say the shooting happened Wednesday about 11 p.m. after an officer made a traffic stop and determined a passenger in the vehicle had a warrant for an arrest on an undisclosed allegation. A Beltrami…
MILWAUKEE – Wisconsin farmers will receive about $10 million in federal money from the farm bailout program. U.S. Department of Agriculture data obtained by the Washington non-profit Environmental Working Group shows the average payment for Wisconsin farmers from the Market Facilitation program is $2,145. The Journal Sentinel reports 11 farms received more than $50,000 each, while 237 farms got less…
(AP Photo/Richard Drew)NEW YORK – Michael Cohen, President Donald Trump’s former lawyer, has pleaded guilty to lying to Congress about work he did on a Trump real estate project in Russia. Cohen made a surprise appearance Thursday in a New York courtroom to enter the plea. He admitted making false statements in 2017 to a Senate intelligence committee about a…
ST. PAUL, Minn.-Election officials say Minnesota’s voter turnout in the midterm elections was the best in the nation. The State Canvassing Board met Tuesday to certify results of the Nov. 6 general election. Secretary of State Steve Simon says for the second election in a row, Minnesota’s voter participation was the best in the U.S. Simon says the total number…
ST. PAUL, Minn.-A state task force studying how sexual assault cases are handled in Minnesota says there are serious shortcomings in the investigation and prosecution of the cases. A draft report recommending legislative reforms obtained by the Star Tribune says Minnesota suffers from “systemic and complex” deficiencies in how police and prosecutors process sexual assault cases. State Attorney General Lori…
VIRGINIA, Minn.-State officials say one person has died after being shot by a law enforcement officer in northeastern Minnesota. The Bureau of Criminal Apprehension says the shooting happened Tuesday in Virginia. Local police and St. Louis County sheriff’s deputies responded to a report of suspicious activity and found someone in the street. The BCA hasn’t said what prompted an officer…
RICE LAKE, Minn. – Authorities in northeastern Minnesota say there is no evidence that someone is poisoning dogs in Rice Lake. St. Louis County sheriff’s Sgt. Wade Rasch spoke to about a dozen people at the Rice Lake City Council meeting Monday night. Rasch says deputies are not looking for “a mean, suspicious dude who is poisoning our pets.” Rasch…
ST. PAUL, Minn. – Election officials say Minnesota’s voter turnout in the midterm elections was the best in the nation. The State Canvassing Board met Tuesday to certify results of the Nov. 6 general election. Secretary of State Steve Simon says for the second election in a row, Minnesota’s voter participation was the best in the U.S. Simon says the…
courtesy: Fox NewsBETHESDA, Md. – Officials say they’ve seen “no indication” of an active shooter after clearing the basement of a building at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center outside Washington. Naval Support Activity Bethesda tweeted Tuesday afternoon that an active shooter had been reported in the basement of a building at the Maryland base. About 40 minutes later, NSAB…
MINNEAPOLIS – The number of farms filing for bankruptcy is increasing across the Upper Midwest. A new analysis from the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis shows 84 farms filed for bankruptcy in Wisconsin, Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota and Montana in the 12 months that ended in June. That’s more than double the number over the same period in 2013…
(AP) – The US Postal Service says it’s fixed a security flaw on its website which may have exposed the personal information of more than 60 million customers. The flaw affected usps.com and allowed anyone to see, and even possibly change, the personal account information of its users. According to ‘Krebs on Security’, an anonymous researcher says he told USPS…
EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. – A man accused of threatening some teenagers with a gun inside a McDonald’s in Eden Prairie has been released from jail. Prosecutors say they’re still weighing possible charges against the 55-year-old Lloyd Edward Johnson who has been in the Hennepin County Jail since last week. A Somali teenager told the Star Tribune that she confronted a…
ST. PAUL, Minn. – Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system officials are seeking more state funding to make the schools more accessible and affordable, as the state is seeing a surge in skilled trades training. Chancellor Devinder Malhotram tells Minnesota Public Radio that while the system has about 38,000 graduates a year, officials feel the need to scale up operations….
NEW YORK – U.S. health officials say it’s OK to eat some romaine lettuce again. Just check the label. The Food and Drug Administration is narrowing its blanket warning from last week, when it said people shouldn’t eat any type of romaine because of an E. coli outbreak. The agency on Monday said romaine recently harvested in Arizona, Florida, Mexico…
MADISON, Wis. – The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources says this year’s gun deer season set a record for hunter safety. Three hunters suffered non-fatal shooting injuries during the hunt that began Nov. 17 and ended Sunday. DNR conservation warden Jon King says that make it the state’s safest gun deer season ever. Prior to this year, the DNR considered…
ST. CLOUD, Minn. – Police in St. Cloud are looking for the suspect who shot and wounded a 34-year-old man during a fight outside a house party. Officers were sent to the shooting around 4 a.m. Sunday. Police say the victim was shot in the stomach and left before officers arrived. He was taken by ambulance to St. Cloud Hospital…
MADISON, Wis. – Republican Attorney General Brad Schimel says private events in public spaces need liquor licenses. Schimel quietly issued an informal opinion Nov. 16 at the request of state Rep. Rob Swearingen, a member of the Assembly tourism committee. Swearingen asked Schimel to interpret statutes that prohibit owners of public places from allowing alcohol without a license. The statutes…
