Shawano Police Department

March 7

Police logged 31 incidents, including the following:

Suspicious — Police responded to a suspicious person complaint in the 600 block of South Union Street.

Truancy — Police logged four truancy complaints from Shawano Community High School, 220 County Road B.

Juvenile — Police responded to a juvenile problem in the 200 block of South Sawyer Street.

Weather — Police logged eight incidents of debris in the road and utility problems caused by high winds.

Shawano County Sheriff’s Department

March 7

Deputies logged 53 incidents, including the following:

Suspicious — Authorities responded to a suspicious person complaint on Lake Drive in the town of Washington.

Truancy — Authorities logged four truancy complaints from Bonduel Middle/High School, 400 W. Green Bay St., Bonduel.

Juvenile — Authorities responded to a juvenile problem on Prouty Street in Wittenberg.

Trespass — Authorities responded to a trespassing complaint on Witt-Birn Townline Road in the town of Wittenberg.

Trespass — Authorities responded to a trespassing complaint on Lemke Street in Cecil.

Suspicious — Authorities responded to a suspicious person complaint on Ellms Street in Wittenberg.

Harassment — Authorities responded to a harassment complaint on Sycamore Road in the town of Richmond.

Weather — Authorities logged 15 incidents of debris in the road and utility problems caused by high winds.

Clintonville Police Department

March 7

Police logged seven incidents, including the following:

Weather — Officers assisted with wires and trees down on Ninth Street.

Truancy — Police logged three truancy complaints from Clintonville School District.

Farmers have until March 15 to review which USDA crop risk protection options, including federal crop insurance and the Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program, they need for spring-seeded crops.

Federal crop insurance covers crop losses from natural adversities such as drought, hail and excessive moisture.

NAP covers losses from natural disasters on crops for which no permanent federal crop insurance program is available, including forage and grazing crops, fruits, vegetables, mushrooms, floriculture, ornamental nursery, aquaculture, turf grass, ginseng, honey, syrup, bioenergy and industrial crops.

The March 15 deadline applies to the following crops in Shawano andMenominee counties: sorghum forage, herbs, pumpkins, and most annual fruits and vegetables.

“NAP policies allow producers to protect their investment by purchasing coverage for noninsurable crops,” said Nancy Swenty, executive director of the Shawano-Menominee County USDA Farm Service Agency. “Natural disasters are an unavoidable part of farming and ranching, and FSA programs like NAP help producers recover when they experience a loss.”

USDA has partnered with Michigan State University and the University of Illinois to create an online tool at www.fsa.usda.gov/nap that allows producers to determine whether their crops are eligible for federal crop insurance or NAP, and to explore the best level of protection for their operation.

NAP basic coverage is available at 55 percent of the average market price for crop losses that exceed 50 percent of expected production, with higher levels of coverage, up to 65 percent of their expected production at 100 percent of the average market price available, including coverage for organics and crops marketed directly to consumers. Crops intended for grazing are not eligible for additional NAP coverage.

Federal crop insurance coverage is sold and delivered solely through private insurance agents. Agent lists are available at all USDA Service Centers or at USDA’s online Agent Locator: http://prodwebnlb.rma.usda.gov/apps/AgentLocator/#.

Producers can use the USDA Cost Estimator at https://ewebapp.rma.usda.gov/apps/costestimator/Default.aspx to predict insurance premium costs.

For information, contact the Shawano-Menominee County FSA office, 603A Lakeland Road, Shawano, at 715-524-4814, ext. 2, or visit www.fsa.usda.gov/nap online.

The University of Wisconsin-Extension in Marinette, Oconto and Shawano Counties is offering a farm succession workshop from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. March 22 at Premier Community Bank, 745 State Highway 32, in Pulaski.

It is estimated approximately 51 percent of Wisconsin farmers are over the age of 55 and more than 22 percent are over the age of 65. Proper planning is essential to develop an effective strategy to transfer their farms to the next generation, taking into consideration financial, legal, tax and estate issues.

Presentations at the workshop will include methods of asset transfer, presented by George Twohig, attorney with Twohig, Rietbrock, Schneider Halbach Law; costs of health care and long-term care, Romeo Raabe, with The Long Term Care Guy in Green Bay; securing loans and financial requirements for the next generation, Lucas McMahon, commercial/ag loan officer, Premier Community Bank; and benefits of farm meetings, Sarah Mills-Lloyd, agriculture agent, UW-Extension Oconto County.

Registration is required before March 17.

The workshop fee, which includes meals and materials, is $25 per person or $40 per farm operation. To register, contact Jamie Patton, Shawano County ag agent for Shawano County, at 715-526-6136 or jamie.patton@ces.uwex.edu.

City officials Wednesday awarded bids for street and utility reconstruction projects that came in at significantly less than expected.

The Common Council approved the bid from Dorner Inc. of Luxemburg in the amount of $2.18 million.

Eight companies competed for this year’s street reconstruction projects, with the highest bid coming in at nearly $2.6 million, which was closer to expectations budgeted in this year’s capital improvement projects.

“We’re very happy with the bids the way they came in,” said Eddie Sheppard, city public works coordinator.

Some of the major street reconstruction projects for 2017 include Hamlin Street, from Fifth to Schurz streets; Franklin Street, from First to Third streets; and Franklin Street, from Oshkosh to Wescott streets; Division Street, from Hamlin Street to 500 feet east; Schurz Street, from Hamlin to 500 feet east; and storm sewer repairs on the north lane of East Green Bay Street, from Green Bay Court to Arlington Street.

The total cost will be split between street reconstruction at about $1.1 million and sanitary sewer and water main work at just over $1 million, a portion of which will be funded through the tax incremental finance district.

A half-dozen Bonduel School District residents attended an information meeting about the referendum on the April 4 ballot Monday at the high school, but Administrator Patrick Rau is not worried about the low turnout.

The district has been going to the people instead of waiting for them to come to scheduled meetings.

Rau said presentations about the need for the referendum have been made to the Cecil Village Board and Washington Town Board, along with the Cecil Fire Department, Bonduel Lions Club and other civic groups.

On April 4, residents will be asked to increase the district’s tax rate by $1.80 per $1,000 of equalized valuation, up from the current $9.55, in a measure that would give the district up to $1 million annually for the next three years. If the proposal is approved, property owners would pay an additional $180 annually for a property valued at $100,000.

The tax rate probably will be higher than the $11.35 estimated, however, because of factors such as enrollment and state aid formulas.

At Monday’s meeting, “a fair amount of questions revolved around the state funding formula and trying to understand how schools are funded,” Rau said during an interview Wednesday, noting that half of the district’s operating budget is funded through state aid.

The district estimated a $400,000 budget deficit for the 2017-18 school year in January. The projected deficit swells to $685,000 in 2018-19, according to Rau, and $1.3 million for 2019-20.

If the referendum does not pass, Rau anticipates cuts to staff and programs will have to take place in order to balance the budget.

“We let folks know that the $1 million is just to maintain programs as we have them,” Rau said. “We’re doing our best to communicate with people.”

That communication has also included presenting information on the district’s website, social media such as Facebook, and handing out fliers at the district’s scholarship dinner and auction.

“I’d like to think that people are aware of it,” Rau said. “We probably don’t get as many people at our meetings because we go out to talk to people.”

Rau said he has not heard any outright opposition to the referendum, but people who have not given an endorsement have asked plenty of questions to make sure they have the facts when they go to the polls.

Rau said he invites any organization that would like to find out more about the referendum to call him at the district office, 715-758-4861.

Two days of high winds kept authorities and area work crews busy cleaning up debris and addressing utility problems throughout Shawano County this week.

The National Weather Service clocked the winds at 25-35 mph with gusts sometimes blowing past the 50 mph mark.

At least two county fires were blamed on power lines downed by the winds.

“The winds are causing issues with all kinds of things,” Sheriff’s Department Capt. Tom Tuma said.

The department logged 15 reports of debris in the road or utility problems Tuesday, followed by another 17 reports between midnight and 3 p.m. Wednesday.

Issues ranged from fallen limbs and branches to entire trees blocking roadways. Fallen power lines on Tuesday started a ditch fire and set fire to two trees, according to the daily sheriff’s report.

Even heavier winds blew in on Wednesday.

“It’s worse today than yesterday,” said Eddie Sheppard, Shawano Public Works coordinator.

Crews were “out and about all day” cleaning up the debris, he said.

The winds also caused headaches for Shawano Municipal Utilities and power outages for pockets of customers.

“We have had numerous tree issues causing outages (Wednesday),” said Rob Koepp, SMU electrical supervisor.

It began just after midnight when crews were called in to put in a secondary power line and restore service to three customers in the 1200 block of South Sawyer Street. They were back online in about an hour.

Most other calls came in between 8-9 a.m., beginning with a large pine tree across from the Goodwill store on Lakeland Road that fell on a three-phase primary overhead power line and snapped a pole.

Five properties lost power, according to SMU, with power restored to four of them by noon. Crews were still working on the last late Wednesday afternoon.

A fallen tree also knocked out power for about a half hour to 28 houses between Cleveland and Kadletz streets.

Nine customers were affected when a tree came down on a single-phase overhead primary line in the 600 block of South Hamlin Street. That outage also lasted about 30 minutes.

A fallen tree also caused an outage for about 15 customers on Woods Road just north of the city. That outage lasted about an hour and a half.

“We also had four other locations where trees or large branches had come down and ripped the service masts off the customer’s houses,” Koepp said. “In those cases we disconnected the wires and had the home owners call an electrician to put the masts back on the house so that we could rehang and reconnect the service wire.”

Shawano police logged 15 wind-related reports of damage over the last two days, as of about 4 p.m. Wednesday.

In addition to debris in roadways and utility problems, the winds brought down a street light and two road signs, pushed garbage cans and even a dumpster into the street, and caused a car door to fly open and take off the mirror of another vehicle.

Shawano Police Department

March 8

Police logged 26 incidents, including the following:

Theft — An iPad was reported stolen at Walmart, 1244 E. Green Bay St.

Weather — Police logged nine incidents of debris in the road and utility problems caused by high winds.

Shawano County Sheriff’s Department

March 8

Deputies logged 40 incidents, including the following:

Probation Violation — A 29-year-old man was arrested for a probation violation on Airport Drive in the town of Wescott.

Auto Theft — A vehicle was reported stolen on Kolpack Road in the town of Aniwa.

OAR — A 24-year-old woman was cited for operating after revocation on state Highway 29 in the town of Hartland.

OWL — A 23-year-old man was cited for operating without a license on East Green Bay Street in Shawano.

Weather — Deputies logged 17 incidents of debris in the road and utility problems caused by high winds.

Clintonville Police Department

March 8

Police logged 14 incidents, including the following:

Burglary — A burglary was reported on Industrial Avenue.

Assault — A battery complaint was reported on Felshow Street.

Weather — Police logged three incidents of debris in the road and utility problems caused by high winds.

Shawano County authorities arrested a 49-year-old Wittenberg man Thursday for allegedly using a computer to facilitate a child sex crime.

The man was taken into custody shortly before 1 p.m. in the town of Belle Plaine, where he had allegedly arranged a sexual rendezvous with what he believed was going to be a 15-year-old girl.

Charges were not expected to be filed before Monday. The Leader does not publish the names of individuals who have not been charged.

His arrest brings to 51 the number of men arrested by Shawano County authorities in online sex sting operations over the last three years, according to sheriff’s department records.

All of the cases stemmed from Shawano County sheriff’s detectives posing online as underage girls, and sometimes boys, as part of the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.

They were contacted by the suspects, who exchanged texts and emails of a graphic nature and set up meetings with them for purposes of having sex. They were arrested when they arrived.

In this case, the suspect chatted with authorities for three months in conversations that included sexual content in spite of being told he was communicating with a 15-year-old girl, according to the sheriff’s office.

The man is being held in the Shawano County Jail and allegations are being forwarded to the Shawano-Menominee County district attorney for review.

Beginning June 1, Harter’s Fox Valley Disposal will be the only company providing garbage and recycling services in the city of Clintonville.

The Common Council last month approved moving to a single waste hauler to limit damage to the city streets caused by multiple garbage trucks and to save residents money through a competitive bid process.

The other haulers currently operating in the city (Waste Management, Advanced Disposal and Graichen) will no longer be licensed by the city.

Under the city’s contract with Harter’s, residents will be charged $9.50 per month ($114 per year) for refuse and recycling collection/disposal.

For 2017, each residential customer will be invoiced $66.50 for seven months of service. For 2018, the annual cost will be placed directly on the property tax bill.

Each customer will be provided a 95-gallon wheeled cart for garbage, which will be picked up weekly, and a 95-gallon cart for recycling pickup, which will occur every other week. Customers also can obtain 35- or 65-gallon carts through Harter’s, but the annual cost will remain the same.

Residents were recently sent information about how to opt out of the service. The deadline to do so is 4:30 p.m. April 29. The opt-out form must be signed and returned to City Hall by that time.

Those who opt out will not be able to request to the service again until August or September 2018 for 2019.

City Administrator Chuck Kell said he expects 100 to 150 residents to opt out. As of Tuesday, about 45 residents had declined the service, he said.

Anyone who decides to opt out of the service will be required to transport their garbage and recyclable materials to the Clintonville Area Waste Service site at 300 Beacon Ave. and pay the CAWS fees.

Additional information regarding the garbage and recycling service, including a calendar showing the pickup schedule, will be sent to residents directly by Harter’s.

Apartment buildings with more than four units are not eligible to receive the service.

As the April 4 referendum on borrowing for city park improvements in Shawano gets closer, interest appears to be growing and questions about the proposal are getting more specific, according to Shawano Park and Recreation Director Matt Hendricks.

The city saw its largest turnout yet for a series of informational meetings on the referendum Tuesday when 15 people showed up. Only three attended the last one.

Hendricks has also been meeting with community groups and civic organizations to make presentations and reach more people.

There has also been a lot of chatter online where the city has posted informational videos about what’s included in the proposal.

Hendricks’ efforts have also been assisted by groups that have put out fliers encouraging a yes vote.

There will be one more public hearing on the proposal at 6 p.m. Wednesday at City Hall, 127 S. Sawyer St.

The advisory referendum on the April 4 ballot will ask whether the city should borrow additional money for development of the Franklin and Smalley parks and a splash pad to replace the kiddie pool at Memorial Park.

The referendum question will ask residents whether the city should borrow up to $1.85 million for the projects.

The 20-year loan would mean an estimated annual tax increase of 25 cents per $1,000 of assessed property value, or $25 for a $100,000 home.

At Franklin Park, the improvements would include an amphitheater for music, movies and community events; public restrooms, and pavilion space available for public rental; a water fountain with benches and trees for visual interest; parking, electrical, landscaping and infrastructure to accommodate community events; walkways, picnic tables and benches; and space for a future playground.

At Smalley Park, plans call for a park pavilion with restroom facilities and a rentable picnic shelter; a canoe and kayak launch; boat landings and boat slips; improved parking, lighting and security; walking trails that connect all of the major park features; trees and other native plantings, including native plantings along the waterway to deter geese; and continued revitalization of the beach and the improvement of beach amenities.

Hendricks said questions early in the process were mostly about the general outlines of the proposal, but have since shifted to more detailed queries into specific aspects of the plan, such as the extent of parking at Franklin Park, where the city proposes adding stalls.

Hendricks said he has heard no objections to what’s being proposed, but there have been reservations from residents who don’t want to see their taxes go up.

The parks and recreation department typically has a capital improvements budget of $250,000 a year, meaning it could take about eight years to accomplish the proposed projects if none of that money were to be spent on any other park improvements.

The additional borrowing would allow the improvements to be made within about two years, though the actual work would probably not get underway until next year, Hendricks said.

Even if the referendum is approved by voters, it will be up to the Shawano Common Council to approve the borrowing.

The parks and recreation department would also continue to pursue grant money, Hendricks said, to cut some of the costs.

A state appeals court Thursday reversed a Shawano man’s bank robbery conviction because the judge did not ask at the plea hearing if he knew he was entitled to a unanimous jury verdict.

Darrin H. Church, 52, was sentenced in July 2014 to five years in prison and another 10 years extended supervision.

Church had pleaded no contest to charges of using the threat of force to rob the CoVantage Credit Union at 911 E. Green Bay St. and attempting to rob Cash Tyme at 705 E. Green Bay St., in April 2013.

The District IV Court of Appeals reversed Church’s convictions on those charges, as well as bail jumping and other misdemeanors.

Circuit Judge William Kussel Jr. conducted an otherwise exemplary plea colloquy, or dialogue, according to the District IV Court of Appeals, but not asking Church about his right to unanimous verdict constitutes a defect, the court ruled.

The court returned the case to Kussel with instructions that the district attorney has to prove Church understood all the rights he was giving up prior to pleading no contest to the charges.

During a December 2015 appeals hearing in Shawano County Circuit Court, Church’s defense counsel argued that the court did not conduct a proper question-and-answer with the defendant with respect to his rights and the possible outcome for a jury trial, and that the sentence for time in prison was not calculated correctly.

Kussel denied the motion for post-conviction relief, finding that the plea discussion with Church was not in error, that the prison time had been previously re-calculated and the judgment of conviction was properly amended, according to court records.

According to the appeals opinion:

During the plea hearing, Kussel noted that the defendant had checked the boxes on the plea questionnaire, including his right to a unanimous verdict. Kussel learned from Church’s attorney, Steven Weerts, that on or near the day of the hearing, he had discussed with Church the constitutional rights he was giving up by entering a plea.

Kussel then addressed Church that he was giving up his right to remain silent, right to proof beyond reasonable doubt and other rights a defendant has at trial.

Church said he understood what he was giving up. However, Kussel didn’t ask Church about the right to a unanimous verdict, and one omission was enough to invalidate the plea.

“(W)e conclude that the circuit court’s failure to engage in a personal colloquy with Church regarding jury unanimity was a plea colloquy defect,” the court said in its 10-page unsigned opinion.

The criminal complaint alleged that Church entered CoVantage Credit Union on April 8, 2013, and gave a teller a note demanding money. He left with more than $6,000 but was arrested a short time later and the money was recovered.

Just before the CoVantage robbery, Church had entered the nearby Cash Tyme Store, gave the teller a note and then told her it was a joke. He left with no funds.

Church had entered another bank earlier the same day but didn’t use the note he had written.

Church was initially found incompetent to stand trial, but that was reversed after a doctor concluded Church had been faking his incompetency.

Church is incarcerated at Oakhill Correctional Institution near Madison, according to online records.

Attempts to contact Church’s appeals attorney, Eric Bauer, and Weerts were unsuccessful. A call to District Attorney Gregory Parker for comment was not returned by deadline.

The village of Bowler received state approval Thursday for a $354,265 project to meet nitrate thresholds for its public water supply.

The village has been under a Department of Natural Resources order to lower the concentration of nitrates in Well 1, which have historically exceeded permissible levels.

The project ordered by the Public Service Commission this week includes a nitrate analyzer to facilitate water blending; a variable frequency drive and portable emergency generator at Well 3; chemical feed pumps at both wells; and supervisory control and data acquisition system upgrades to accommodate the proposed installations and water blending.

The water utility plans to fund the project with a Safe Drinking Water Loan, but the project’s cost could result in a 20 percent increase in water rates, according to the order.

For an average residential customer using 3,000 gallons of water, the quarterly water bill would increase from $70.02 to $84.03. The statewide average for residential customers of similar sized utilities is $66 for the same amount of water, according to the order.

Aaron Gutt, director of public works, said the utility’s finances were being audited, but preliminary indications show the well project can be financed without a rate increase.

Gutt also said the level of nitrates in Well 1 has been decreasing in recent tests due to changes made on a farm determined to be the source of the nitrates.

Some farm animals were moved to a concrete pad, “and the manure runs off to a pit and is spread evenly over fields,” Gutt said.

A pilot project to reduce nitrates in the well’s output in 2013 was not successful, and the village turned to blending water from Well 1 and Well 3. The 60/40 blend of the two wells tested below the maximum allowable nitrate concentration, according to a Public Service Commission order issued this week.

The most recent test of Well 1 showed the maximum permissible nitrate level, and Gutt said he hoped the trend would continue downward.

“The lower number, the better,” he said.

A bid for the well work was awarded to August Winter & Sons, of Appleton. Gutt expects construction to begin in May and be completed in July.

The village raised water rates for residential customers 160 percent in October. The rate case allowed the village to begin collecting the public fire protection charge, which had not been increased since 2004, on water bills, according to PSC documents.

Shawano Police Department

March 9

Police logged 22 incidents, including the following:

Disturbance — Police responded to a disturbance in the 1300 block of South Union Street.

Theft — Money was reported stolen at Shawano Community Middle School, 1050 S. Union St.

Hit and Run — Police investigated a property damage hit-and-run in the 100 block of South Main Street.

Drug Offense — Police investigated a drug complaint in the 1200 block of East Green Bay Street.

Hit and Run — Police investigated a property damage hit-and-run in the 800 block of South Main Street.

Shawano County Sheriff’s Department

March 9

Deputies logged 35 incidents, including the following:

Suspicious — Authorities responded to a suspicious person complaint on Cloverleaf Lake Road in the town of Belle Plaine.

OAR — A 21-year-old woman was cited for operating after revocation on state Highway 156 in the town of Maple Grove.

Trespass — Authorities investigated a trespassing complaint on Foesch Road in the town of Wescott.

Harassment — Authorities responded to a harassment complaint on Main Street in Bowler.

Warrant — A 30-year-old woman was taken into custody on a warrant on state Highway 32 in the town of Green Valley.

Disturbance — Authorities responded to a domestic disturbance on Smalley Street in the town of Wescott.

Disturbance — Authorities responded to a disturbance on Railroad Street in Bowler.

Clintonville Police Department

March 9

Police logged seven incidents, including the following:

Suspicious — Two suspicious incidents were reported at Clintonville High School, 64 Green Tree Road.

Theft — A theft from a vehicle was reported on North Main Street.

Theft — Retail theft complaints were reported on North Main Street and South Main Street.

A Wittenberg man arrested Thursday in a computer sex crime sting was identified Monday as an employee of the Wittenberg-Birnamwood School District.

David Yaeger, 49, transportation manager at Wittenberg-Birnamwood High School, was charged Monday with a felony count of using a computer to facilitate a child sex crime.

Yaeger was taken into custody shortly before 1 p.m. Thursday in the town of Belle Plaine, where he had allegedly arranged a sexual rendezvous with what he believed was a 15-year-old girl.

Shawano County sheriff’s detectives posing online as an underage girl as part of the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force exchanged texts and emails with Yaeger for three months in communications that became sexually graphic in nature before Yaeger allegedly set up a meeting, according to the criminal complaint.

He was taken into custody when he arrived.

Yaeger was ordered held on a $5,000 cash bond at his initial court appearance Monday before Judge James Habeck. His attorney indicated Yaeger would waive his preliminary hearing in the case.

He was scheduled for arraignment on March 27.

District Attorney Greg Parker had requested a $20,000 cash bond due to his position in the school district.

“This person has direct access to a number of children,” Parker said.

Defense counsel Stephen Menard said Yaeger has no expectation of returning to the school district or to his other work as a paramedic.

“He will be terminated,” Menard said. “He doesn’t intend to return to work.”

Wittenberg-Birnamwood School District Superintendent Garrett Rogowski, however, said in an interview that no decision has been taken on any action regarding Yaeger. He said that decision would be reached after consulting with the district’s legal counsel.

Rogowski also said Yaeger had limited interaction with students in his capacity as transportation manager, though he did drive some of the bus routes on a substitute basis when needed.

Rogowski said there have been no previous complaints or concerns raised about Yaeger.

“This is truly a surprise to all of us,” he said.

Rogowski said the district would provide the support necessary to keep district transportation running smoothly, and would provide families with updates on how transportation is being handled.

He also wanted to assure parents that the district takes the safety of their children seriously.

“We’ll make sure we take all measures necessary to keep that promise,” he said.

Yaeger’s arrest brings to 51 the number of men arrested by Shawano County authorities in online sex sting operations over the past three years, according to sheriff’s department records.

Detective Sgt. Gordon Kowaleski said he continues to be amazed at the number of suspects who arrange these underage meetings, even in the face of news coverage about the sex stings.

“The people we deal with are wise to that,” he said. “They know these sting operations are out there.”

Text exchanges included in the criminal complaint show Yaeger asking at least twice whether the supposed 15-year-old was really a cop.

He also expressed misgivings about what he was doing because of her age, but continued the exchanges anyway, according to the complaint.

The exchanges began on Dec. 14 and continued through March 9 when Yaeger was arrested.

Kowaleski said he was unaware until after the arrest that Yaeger was a school district employee.

“Any time you have a suspect, and that person holds a position where they interact with children, I think that justifies what we do,” he said.

Yaeger could face a maximum possible penalty of 40 years in prison and a $100,000 fine if convicted.

Shawano Police Department

March 13

Police logged 23 incidents, including the following:

Theft — A phone was reported stolen at Walmart, 1244 E. Green Bay St.

Disturbance — Police responded to a disturbance in the 500 block of South Smalley Street.

Disturbance — Police responded to a disturbance in the 200 block of North Airport Drive.

Accident — Police responded to a two-vehicle property damage accident at Green Bay and Main streets.

March 12

Police logged nine incidents, including the following:

Shoplifting — Kwik Trip, 1241 E. Green Bay St., reported a shoplifting incident.

Shoplifting — Goodwill Industries, 300 Lakeland Road, reported a shoplifter had fled the store.

Suspicious — Police responded to a suspicious vehicle complaint in the 200 block of East Green Bay Street.

March 11

Police logged 16 incidents, including the following:

Trespass — Police responded to a trespassing complaint in the 200 block of South Andrews Street.

Drug Offense — Police investigated a drug complaint at Main and Oshkosh streets.

Disturbance — Police responded to a report of a fight in progress in the 100 block of South Washington Street.

Disorderly — Police responded to an intoxicated person complaint at Charlie’s County Market, 521 S. Main St.

March 10

Police logged 15 incidents, including the following:

Juvenile — Police responded to a juvenile problem at Shawano Community High School, 220 County Road B.

Disturbance — Police responded to a disturbance in the 1100 block of East Green Bay Street.

Theft — Police responded to a property theft complaint in the 900 block of South Cleveland Street.

Burglary — Police investigated a reported burglary in the 100 block of Hill Street.

Shawano County Sheriff’s Department

March 13

Deputies logged 33 incidents, including the following:

Suspicious — Authorities responded to a suspicious incident on Airport Drive in the town of Wescott.

Disturbance — Authorities responded to a domestic disturbance on Lake Drive in the town of Washington.

Suspicious — Authorities responded to a suspicious vehicle complaint on Center Street in the town of Angelica.

Accidents — Authorities responded to an injury accident on state Highway 22 in the town of Belle Plaine and logged five other accidents.

March 12

Deputies logged 18 incidents, including the following:

Trespass — Authorities responded to a trespassing complaint on Butternut Road in the town of Herman.

Warrant — A 57-year-old Keshena man was arrested on a warrant on Lake Drive in the town of Wescott.

Drug Offense — A 44-year-old Green Bay man was cited for possession of drug paraphernalia on state Highway 29 in the town of Richmond.

Disorderly — Authorities responded to a disorderly conduct complaint on Hemlock Road in the town of Wittenberg.

March 11

Deputies logged 42 incidents, including the following:

Fleeing — A fleeing/pursuit incident was under investigation on state Highway 29 in the town of Waukechon.

Burglary — Authorities were investigating five reports of burglary on Loon Lake Road in the town of Wescott and one of Red River Road in the town of Herman.

OWI — A 24-year-old Suring man was arrested for operating while intoxicated and a 17-year-old Keshena man was cited for possession of drug paraphernalia on state Highway 117 in Bonduel.

OWI — A 49-year-old Green Bay man was arrested for operating while intoxicated on state Highway 29 in the town of Angelica.

March 10

Deputies logged 32 incidents, including the following:

Suspicious — Authorities responded to a suspicious incident on Bon Street in Cecil.

Hit and Run — Authorities investigated a property damage hit-and-run on Cedar Street in Tigerton.

Vandalism — Authorities responded to a vandalism complaints on Fourth Street and on Marble Avenue in Mattoon.

Suspicious — Authorities responded to a suspicious vehicle complaint on Grand Avenue in the town of Wittenberg.

Clintonville Police Department

March 13

Police logged five incidents, including the following:

Vandalism — Damage to property was reported on Harriet Street.

Suspicious — A suspicious incident was reported on South Clinton Avenue.

March 12

Police logged nine incidents, including the following:

Vandalism — Damage to property was reported on Hughes Street.

Harassment — Harassment was reported on North Clinton Avenue.

March 11

Police logged five incidents, including the following:

Disturbance — A neighbor dispute was reported on 10th Street.

March 10

Police logged 13 incidents, including the following:

Juvenile — A disruptive student was reported at Clintonville Middle School, 255 N. Main St.

Suspicious — A suspicious incident was reported on South Clinton Avenue.

Suspicious — A suspicious incident was reported on Robert Street.

A Gillett man committed to a mental institution for an armed standoff with sheriff’s deputies in Wittenberg three years ago was granted a conditional early release after a hearing in Shawano-Menominee County Circuit Court on Tuesday.

Travis W. Keiler, 31, was ordered confined for 26½ years in August 2014. He has been incarcerated at the Mendota Mental Health Institute.

Before he is released, the state Department of Health Services will have to present the court with a conditional release plan that will include monitoring by Wisconsin Probation and Parole. That plan needs to be presented to the court within 60 days.

Judge William Kussel Jr. heard testimony Tuesday from psychologist Michael Galli, who recommended Keiler’s release but added that Keiler will need ongoing monitoring.

Keiler was arrested on April 22, 2014, after a two-hour standoff. He was accused of going armed into the Wittenberg Shell station and McDonald’s, 413 N. Genesee St., where he said he “wanted to shoot it out with the police,” according to the criminal complaint.

Shawano County deputies, with the assistance of the Marathon County Sheriff’s Office, secured the area and closed U.S. Highway 45 for the duration of the incident. An armored vehicle and a Marathon County sniper were among the resources brought in during the incident.

Keiler let everyone out of the building except for one McDonald’s employee, 26-year-old Jacob Kujawa, of Wittenberg, whom he kept as a hostage for about an hour.

Kujawa spoke at one point with a Shawano County hostage negotiator and told him he was unharmed but that Keiler was holding a gun on him, according to the criminal complaint.

Keiler told a hostage negotiator he had quit his job in De Pere and had been driving around before ending up at the Wittenberg Shell station.

The negotiator convinced Keiler to release Kujawa as a sign of good faith. Keiler surrendered peacefully an hour after that.

Keiler entered a plea of no contest to charges of taking a hostage and failing to comply with an officer’s attempt to take him into custody under an agreement that found him not guilty by reason of insanity.

Misdemeanor counts of disorderly conduct and carrying a concealed weapon were dismissed under the plea agreement.

Both the state and Keiler’s defense agreed that Keiler suffered from severe mental illness that required his placement in an institution, but differed on how long he should remain there.

Kussel ordered the maximum confinement of 25 years on the hostage-taking charge and another year and a half on the charge of failing to comply with an officer’s attempt to take Keiler into custody.

Shawano County is considering moving out of the Fellman Center and consolidating human services operations in an expanded and remodeled Lakeland Center.

The county’s human services board voted Tuesday to recommend hiring a consultant to study space needs for the department that serves senior citizens, people with disabilities, behavioral health clients and others.

No estimates have been presented yet on how much it might cost to expand or remodel the county-owned Lakeland Center, 504 Lakeland Road, Shawano.

County officials, however, said consolidating human services under one roof could boost efficiency and end up costing less. The county currently pays about $83,000 a year to lease space inside the privately-owned Fellman Center, 607 E. Elizabeth St., Shawano.

“We could save the taxpayers a lot of money,” said Supervisor Richard Ferfecki, chairman of the human services board.

Board members voted unanimously to recommend the consultant study as the county works to assemble its 2018 budget. The County Board generally approves a yearly spending plan in October.

The county budget currently is about $51 million, which includes $9.5 million for human services.

The Fellman Center is owned by a private nonprofit group known as Shawano County Job Center Inc., headed by Mike Schuler.

Human Services Director Richard Kane notified county leaders in his 2016 year-end report that he wanted to explore the possibility of moving out of the Fellman Center and consolidating in the Lakeland Center. At the time, Kane wrote that the move could involve expansion of the Lakeland Center and remodeling for Lakeland Industries, an on-site county jobs program for people with disabilities.

On Tuesday, Kane urged human services board members to move ahead with recommending a study as part of the county’s budget-making process.

“If we’re serious about doing it, the time is right,” he said.

The human services department employs more than 100 people to provide such services as meals and transportation for senior citizens, emergency care for recovering drug addicts and others with mental health issues, case management for children with disabilities, home heating assistance for struggling families, and protective services for children at risk of abuse or neglect.

The department was created two years ago when Shawano County merged its social services and community programs departments.

Supervisor Bonnie Olson, another member of the human services board, said Tuesday she questions whether the county could find a better deal than renting facilities at the Fellman Center. In contrast, she said, consolidating at the Lakeland Center could involve other expenses, such as added parking for employees.

Olson agreed that a study is warranted, although she noted that it might not necessarily support the consolidation move.

“Those numbers would be interesting — a selling point or not a selling point,” she said.

Several more buildings are slated to come down next week in Clintonville.

The city’s Common Council accepted the lowest bid out of four Tuesday night from Kersten Excavating, LLC, for $76,000, to demolish a former bowling alley and the Sawyer Electronics buildings located on 11th Street.

The buildings are owned by the city and are being demolished because of building conditions that are not habitable or safe for public use.

City Administrator Chuck Kell said that, based on the bid award and other associated costs with the removal of the buildings, the total project cost will be approximately $15,000 less than the $130,000 budgeted for the project.

Demolition is to start sometime next week with Public Works Manager Kray Brown supervising the demolition by the contractor.

A raze order had been issued for one of the buildings in June 2015 by Scott Nordin, of Nordin Design Group, who had determined the cost to repair the building would not be economically feasible or prudent.

Waupaca County Department of Health and Human Services Environmental Health Manager Jed Wohlt said two years ago that the building was beyond uninhabitable.

Money for the project had been set aside from the 2016-17 borrowed money.

The city recently demolished the remains of the China King building at 46A South Main St. following a fire in the building, and the owner did not have insurance. The city ended up paying $47,000 to remove that building.

Kell said it has been determined that the building at 49 S. Main St. that also had a fire could be repaired. The city is in the process of having the city attorney prepare a raze or repair order for the property.

A 63-year-old Appleton man was killed in a two-vehicle crash in the town of Herman late Tuesday, according to the Shawano County Sheriff’s Department.

Dale Lillge was a passenger in a vehicle driven by Robert Below, 79, of Appleton, on southbound County Road U just before 9 p.m. when it entered the intersection at state Highway 29 and was struck by an eastbound vehicle driven by a 39-year-old Suamico woman, according to the sheriff’s department.

Lillge was pronounced dead at the scene.

The sheriff’s department said the other parties — including three children in the eastbound vehicle — were checked out at the scene by medical personnel, but the extent of any other injuries was not known.

No further information was being released Wednesday afternoon and the crash remains under investigation.

Shawano Police Department

March 14

Police logged 19 incidents, including the following:

Disturbance — Police responded to a disturbance at the Wisconsin House, 216 E. Green Bay St.

Disturbance — Police responded to a disturbance in the 500 block of South Smalley Street.

Suspicious — Police responded to a suspicious person complaint in the 200 block of East Green Bay Street.

Threatening — Police responded to a threatening complaint at Shawano Community Middle School, 1050 S. Union St.

Suspicious — Police responded to a suspicious person complaint in the 1100 block of South Bartlett Street.

Shawano County Sheriff’s Department

March 14

Deputies logged 28 incidents, including the following:

Disturbance — Deputies assisted Shawano police at a disturbance at the Wisconsin House, 216 E. Green Bay St.

Disturbance — Authorities responded to a disturbance on Maple Street in Eland.

Burglary — A burglary was reported on Campground Road in the town of Seneca.

Trespass — Authorities responded to a trespassing complaint on Bierman Road in the town of Aniwa.

Threatening — Authorities responded to a threatening complaint on Old 22 Road in the town of Washington.

Clintonville Police Department

March 14

Police logged nine incidents, including the following:

Drug Offense — Citations were issued issued for possession of marijuana and drug paraphernalia on North Main Street.

Hit and Run —A hit and run property damage accident was reported on West Madison Street.

Harassment —A harassment issue was reported on Hemlock Street.

Vandalism — Damage to property was reported on Stewart Street.

Disturbance — A domestic incident was reported on North 12th Street.