MADISON, Wis. (AP) – Dane County sheriff’s officials say they’ve arrested a Madison man for his tenth drunken driving offense. A deputy stopped the 56-year-old man about 12:30 a.m. Monday in the Town of Blooming Grove. Authorities got a warrant to have his blood drawn at a hospital and he was booked into the county jail on a felony drunken…
WAUSAU, Wis. (AP) – Authorities say 16 people have been charged in a methamphetamine distribution operation in central Wisconsin. The charges were announced Friday by U.S. Attorney Scott Blader in the Western District, the FBI, Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul and local officials. A federal grand jury indicted 12 of the 16 people last month, including three individuals from St….
KENOSHA, Wis. (AP) – Authorities have made a fourth arrest in connection with a black market THC vape manufacturing business in Wisconsin. A 19-year-old woman is being held in the Kenosha County Jail on possible charges of manufacturing or delivering marijuana. But officials haven’t said yet what role the woman may have had in the business. Forty-three-year-old Courtney Huffhines and…
BRAINERD, Minn. (AP) – The Minnesota Department of Health is investigating cases of salmonella and hepatitis A at the Crow Wing County Jail. The sheriff’s office says one inmate has tested positive for salmonella, a bacteria that causes gastrointestinal illness. Other inmates and staff have also reported intestinal illnesses. The source of the bacteria has not been determined. One inmate…
BAXTER, Minn. (AP) – Diabetes activist Quinn Nystrom is seeking the Democratic nomination to challenge GOP Rep. Pete Stauber in northeastern Minnesota’s 8th Congressional District. Nystrom said Thursday that she’s running to bring down the costs of health care and prescription drugs. She says Stauber has failed to follow through on his promise to help struggling Minnesotans afford their health…
MADISON, Wis. (AP) – A Republican Wisconsin state lawmaker who is running for Congress wants to call a convention of the states to consider making changes to the U.S. Constitution, including imposing term limits on federal offices. State Sen. Tom Tiffany is co-sponsoring the resolution in the state Legislature to call the constitutional convention. Fifteen other states have already passed…
DULUTH, Minn. – The City of Duluth has decided to petition the Supreme Court to review the case of the former Duluth police officer who was fired for dragging a handcuffed man through a downtown skywalk in 2017. Last month, the Minnesota Court of Appeals affirmed an arbitrator’s 2018 decision to reinstate Huot stating it did not violate public policy….
ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) – A federal audit estimates that Minnesota made $3.7 million in unallowed payments to managed care organizations from 2014 to 2016 for dead people who had been enrolled in Medicaid. The inspector general at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services said in a report Wednesday that the unallowed payments happened because the state didn’t…
MADISON, Wis. (AP) – A suicide prevention hotline could receive a boost in funding from the Legislature’s budget committee under a vote scheduled to take place after a bitter partisan fight. The Republican-controlled budget panel was expected to approve the $110,000 annual grant on Wednesday. The vote was scheduled a week after a Republican-led suicide prevention task force recommended releasing…
WASHINGTON (AP) — Bernie Sanders’ campaign says the Democratic presidential candidate has had a heart procedure for a blocked artery. The Vermont senator is canceling events and appearances “until further notice.” The campaign says the 78-year-old Sanders experienced chest discomfort during an event Tuesday and sought medical evaluation. The campaign says two stents were “successfully inserted” and that Sanders “is…
(courtesy: Office of Gov. Tim Walz) ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) – Gov. Tim Walz says he’s willing to look at legislation that would allow college athletes in Minnesota to hire agents and make money off endorsements, like the law just signed in California. Walz says he’s always been fairly uncomfortable with NCAA rules that prohibit athletes from earning endorsements. California’s…
WINONA, Minn. (AP) – Members of the Minnesota House will gather in Winona and other southeastern Minnesota communities Wednesday for a three-day mini-session. More than 100 lawmakers from both parties have registered. They’ll participate in tours and informational field hearings on a wide range of topics. No votes will be taken. It’s the first time the House has held a…
(AP Photo/Jim Mone, File) ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) – Minnesota utility regulators have unfrozen the approval process for Enbridge Energy’s plan to replace its aging Line 3 crude oil pipeline across the state. The Public Utilities Commission voted unanimously Tuesday to direct the state Commerce Department to conduct a further environmental review on the potential effects of spills in the…
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) – A federal judge has rejected challenges by several environmental groups to a land swap needed for the planned PolyMet copper-nickel mine in northeastern Minnesota. U.S. District Judge Joan Ericksen dismissed the four challenges late Monday. She ruled that the groups lacked the necessary legal standing to block the land exchange between PolyMet and the federal government. She…
MADISON, Wis. (AP) – Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers plans to change the date of the special election for an open congressional state after being alerted by the U.S. Department of Justice that the dates he set last week violated federal law. The election is to replace Republican Sean Duffy, who resigned last week. Evers on Sept. 23 set the special…
KENOSHA, Wis. (AP) – Authorities have arrested the mother of two Wisconsin brothers accused of illegally manufacturing vaping cartridges with THC oil. The Kenosha County Sheriff’s Office says 43-year-old Courtney Huffhines faces charges that include possessing and manufacturing THC, but details of her alleged involvement have not been disclosed. The sheriff’s office says more information is being released Tuesday. The…
(photo: Twitter/Matt Walker) MADISON, Wis. (AP) – The 25-year-old son of former Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker has decided against a run for Congress. Matt Walker posted on Twitter Monday that he would not run to replace retiring Republican U.S. Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner in Wisconsin’s 5th Congressional District. Walker has never run for office and he was among several Republicans eyeing…
(AP) – CVS has halted sales of popular heartburn treatment Zantac and the store generic version after warnings by U.S. health regulators. CVS is the latest retailer to pull the heartburn tablets from store shelves. Earlier this month, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration warned consumers about a potentially dangerous contaminant in prescription and over-the-counter versions of Zantac. In its…
SARTELL, Minn. (AP) – It took 9-year-old Kade Lovell longer than expected to finish his 5K race, but only because he was busy accidentally winning a separate 10K race. Lovell’s mother became worried when he didn’t cross the finish line of the Francis Franny Flyer 5K in Sartell, Minnesota, on Sept. 21. The St. Cloud Times reports she drove along…
SUPERIOR, Wis. – Husky Energy says it’s been given approval to rebuild its oil refinery in Superior after an explosion and a series of fires last year. Husky says it will start the $400 million plan immediately with the goal of resuming partial operations in 2021. “Our continued investment in this refinery and the community will support the Superior-Duluth regional…
HASTINGS, Minn. (AP) – A 60-year-old Minnesota man with 18 drunken-driving convictions will serve 20 months in prison for causing a crash that seriously injured two people in 2017. Marshall A. Knoll pleaded guilty to first-degree driving while impaired in exchange for the dismissal of two more-serious charges. Prosecutors say Knoll was driving with a suspended license and was high…
ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) – Minnesota pollution regulators have denied a water quality certification for Enbridge Energy’s proposed Line 3 upgrade, but it may be a short-lived victory for opponents of the project. The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency announced the denial Friday. The agency said the move was necessary because the state Court of Appeals had ruled in June that…
NEW YORK (AP) – Health officials say their investigation into a recent outbreak of severe vaping-related illnesses is increasingly focused on products that contain THC. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Friday most people who got sick vaped THC, the ingredient that produces a high in marijuana. A new study published by CDC found two-thirds who got sick…
DETROIT (AP) – Nissan is recalling 1.3 million vehicles in the U.S., Canada and other countries to fix a problem with backup camera displays. The recall covers most of the Nissan and Infiniti model lineups from the 2018 and 2019 model years. The company says in government documents posted Tuesday that owners can adjust the camera displays so the image…
ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) – A Minnesota court says R.J. Reynolds Tobacco has wrongfully failed to pay the state millions of dollars it owes under Minnesota’s landmark 1998 settlement with the tobacco industry. The attorney general’s office says the court will enter a judgment in the coming months for the amount that Reynolds owes. Attorney General Keith Ellison said late…
(Photo by Michael Zorn/Invision/AP) NEW YORK (AP) – Jennifer Lopez and Shakira are going to bring the heat to the 2020 Pepsi Super Bowl Halftime Show. NFL, Pepsi and Roc Nation announced Thursday that the superstar performers, who have released music in Spanish and English, will perform on February 2 at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida. Both Lopez…
MADISON, Wis. (AP) – A bipartisan proposal making it a felony to trespass or damage oil or gas pipelines Wisconsin is moving through the state Legislature. Opponents testified at an Assembly hearing Thursday that the bill is a violation of free speech rights. The measure builds upon a 2015 state law that made it a felony to intentionally trespass or…
APPLETON, Wis. (AP) – Appleton police have asked prosecutors to charge a suspect with first-degree intentional homicide in the death of a 60-year-old woman. Police gave few details Thursday but said the suspect is a male “who had a close relationship” with the victim, Lee Ann Dorn, who was found dead in her Appleton apartment in February. The police statement…
WASHINGTON (AP) – House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff says President Donald Trump’s actions detailed in a newly released whistleblower complaint read like “a classic organized crime shakedown.” Schiff on Thursday opened a hearing with acting Director of National Intelligence Joseph Maguire. Maguire released the complaint to Congress and the public this week after weeks of delay. The complaint details…
HONOLULU (AP) – Hawaii police have identified a body recovered from a Honolulu canal as a woman visiting from Minnesota. The Honolulu Star-Advertiser reported Tuesday that the body of 51-year-old Shannon Bartholomew of Minneapolis was discovered Monday in the Ala Wai Canal. Police say the death has been classified as suspicious due to the position the body was in upon…
NEW YORK (AP) – Al Franken is returning to the public sphere with a new weekly radio show on SiriusXM that will blend politics, humor and other topics. The former Minnesota senator says the show is not part of any attempt to return to politics. It is Franken’s most prominent project since he was forced to resign from the U.S….
ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) – The Minnesota Department of Human Services says it underestimated the amount of money it overpaid two Native American tribes for substance abuse treatment covered under Medicaid. The agency reported last month that it overpaid the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe and the White Earth Nation by more than $25 million. The Pioneer Press reports that…
MADISON, Wis. (AP) – A final report from the Wisconsin Legislature’s bipartisan suicide prevention task force calls for quicker release of $110,000 a year to fund a suicide prevention hotline, unlike an earlier draft that proposed passing a bill to make the money available. The money was included in the state budget passed by the Republican-controlled Legislature and signed by…
MISHICOT, Wis. (AP) – The season for hunting ruffed grouse in the northwestern two-thirds of Wisconsin has been shortened by more than three weeks. The state Department of Natural Resources board voted Wednesday to make the change over concerns about a dwindling population. The ruffed grouse season currently runs from mid-September through Jan. 31 in that part of the state….
EAU CLAIRE, Wis. (AP) – At least one confirmed tornado touched down as severe storms ripped through western Wisconsin, damaging homes and other structures near the Chippewa-Dunn county line. Chippewa County Sheriff Jim Kowalczyk told WEAU-TV that no one he knew of was unaccounted for after Tuesday night’s storms, with only a few people having suffered minor injuries. Emergency managers…
WASHINGTON (AP) – The memo summarizing President Donald Trump’s call with the Ukraine leader shows the president’s lingering fixation on special counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia investigation. Trump flippantly refers to the ex-FBI director as a “man named Robert Mueller” and says he turned in “a very poor performance.” The memo also shows that the president made reference to the private…
NEW YORK (AP) – Juul Labs will no longer promote its e-cigarettes in print, digital and TV advertisements and is replacing its CEO amid an escalating backlash against vaping nationwide. The nation’s largest e-cigarette maker also pledged Wednesday not to lobby against a sweeping ban on vaping flavors proposed by the Trump administration earlier this month. Juul announced its CEO,…
WASHINGTON (AP) – House Speaker Nancy Pelosi plans to announce a formal impeachment inquiry of President Donald Trump over allegations that he pressured the leader of Ukraine to investigate Joe Biden’s family. Pelosi’s likely decision was described to The Associated Press by a person familiar with the decision who was not authorized to speak publicly and spoke on condition of…
ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) – Law enforcement officials say they’ve seized 75,000 vaping cartridges in Anoka County. The Department of Public Safety says the cartridges are believed to have come from out of state for distribution in Minnesota. Lung illnesses tied to vaping have become a major health concern in recent months, with hundreds of people stricken nationwide and at…
MADISON, Wis. (AP) – A second Republican has announced he’s running for a northern Wisconsin congressional seat to replace U.S. Rep. Sean Duffy. Army veteran Jason Church announced his candidacy Tuesday, a day after Duffy resigned his seat. Church joins fellow Republican state Sen. Tom Tiffany as the only announced candidates in the race. Numerous others, including many Democrats, are…
MADISON, Wis. (AP) – The special election in Wisconsin to replace Republican U.S. Rep. Sean Duffy will be held Jan. 27. Gov. Tony Evers on Monday announced that will be the general election date, with a primary on Dec. 30. The 7th Congressional District covers mostly rural central, northern and northwest Wisconsin. Duffy was resigning effective Monday, citing concerns with…
ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) – A disease spread by insects has killed a wild deer near Caledonia in Houston County of southeastern Minnesota and is suspected in the death of another deer nearby. The Department of Natural Resources said Monday that Houston County is the second county in Minnesota where wild deer have contracted epizootic hemorrhagic disease, or EHD. The…
MADISON, Wis. (AP) – As Republican U.S. Rep. Sean Duffy spends in his final day as a member of Congress, the focus shifts to whom else will run to succeed him. Duffy’s resignation Monday also clears the way for Gov. Tony Evers to announce when the special election will be to fill the seat. The Democratic Evers has said he…
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) – Authorities say the body of a teenager reported missing while swimming with others in a western Minnesota river has been found. The Star Tribune reports the body of 16-year-old Thunder W. Brothersofall, of Redwood Falls, was located about 6:10 p.m. Saturday in the north-flowing Redwood River. Redwood Falls police say three men in kayaks searching for Brothersofall…
(AP) – The New England Patriots have released receiver Antonio Brown after a second woman accused him of sexual misconduct. The team announced the move Friday in a statement emailed to reporters. The statement said: “We appreciate the hard work of many people over the past 11 days, but we feel that it is best to move in a different…
(AP Photo/Evan Vucci) MINNEAPOLIS (AP) – Minnesota food pantry officials are opposing a federal proposal that could take away food stamp benefits from more than 35,000 state residents. The Trump administration in July proposed closing what it calls “a loophole” that that enables people receiving only minimal benefits from the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program to be eligible automatically…
NEW YORK (AP) – Walmart says it will stop selling electronic cigarettes at its namesake stores and Sam’s Clubs following a string illnesses and deaths related to vaping. The nation’s largest retailer said Friday that it will complete its exit from e-cigarettes after selling through current inventory. It cited growing federal, state and local regulatory complexity regarding vaping products. More…
MADISON, Wis. (AP) – Three legislators have introduced a bill that would legalize medical marijuana in Wisconsin. Sens. Jon Erpenbach and Patrick Testin along with Rep. Chris Taylor introduced the bill Friday. Erpenbach and Taylor are Democrats. Testin is a Republican. The bill would require patients to get a doctor’s recommendation. State health officials would have to create a registry…
MADISON, Wis. (AP) – A group of lawmakers is introducing a bill that would allow American Indians from anywhere in the United States to pay resident tuition at University of Wisconsin System schools. The bill’s chief sponsors, Democratic state Rep. Nick Milroy, Republican Rep. Jeff Mursau and Democratic Sen. Jeff Smith, say they hope the bill will encourage more American…
EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. (AP) – A ceremonial send-off is being held for 700 Minnesota National Guard members headed for Western Asia. The St. Paul-based 34th Expeditionary Combat Aviation Brigade will provide Army helicopter, airplane and drone support to U.S. and coalition forces. The unit flies Black Hawk, Chinook and Apache helicopters and twin-engine turboprops for reconnaissance, transportation and medical evacuations….
